Adventure of A Lifetime:Season 1
by DaniWilder
Summary: This is an AU with Jennifer on Atlantis since the beginning of the expedition. Some characters, especially Jennifer, are OOC. As always this is McKeller. Season 1 is officially over.
1. Prologue

**MGM owns all characters.**

**Some dialogue taken from Gateworld.  
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**A/N: Thanks to dwparsnip and scr1tno for telling me to publish this. This is a rewrite of a lot of the series, so if this doesn't get much interest I won't finish it. Hope everyone saw in the summary that Jennifer is OOC and that this is AU.  
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Carson Beckett sat across from his young, American friend in a tiny three-room apartment she rented outside of Boston Massachusetts. He was in town to watch his young friend's second doctoral defense. He could not stay for her graduation ceremony and would therefore miss meeting her father again. In the ten years Carson has known Jennifer Keller he never got the chance to meet the man. Carson needed to get back to his job, which was the main reason he was here.

"Jennifer, love, I want to talk to you about what you're going to do next. You have two PhD's and an MD. I think you need to get out of the academic setting and into the real world," the Scotsman said in his familiar accent.

"I am looking into a program at the University of Chicago. My Dad will be happy that I'm closer to home," Jennifer said.

"You can't go back to school, _again_. You need to get out into the world. I will not let you hide away forever. You need to live," Carson replied, reaching into his bag to pull out a large stack of papers. "I know how you like to read paper, so I printed this book for you. I can't give it to you without you doing two things first."

"Excuse me?"

"This will change your life forever, but you have to promise me you will give me the next six months to work with me."

"Working with you? Doing what?"

"Genetic research that has never been done before. The opportunity to study with geniuses from multiple disciplines and countries. You will be a part of something you could not imagine possible."

"What is it?"

"Promise me first, love." Carson's blue eyes were twinkling.

"Why can't you tell me what's going on?" Jennifer was suspicious. _What is he up to?_

"You must promise to come with me for the next six months. I should warn you that you'll be isolated and not able to see your father."

"For six months? What about e-mail or phone?"

"E-mail is okay, but it's not private."

"Carson, are you working for the Government?" The young woman could not believe he would work for the defense department.

"Promise and then sign this." He pulled out a single piece of paper with a strange symbol and the the letters **SGC** on it.

"Carson, what did you get yourself into?"

"Just promise and then sign the paper, love," Carson teased once again.

"Okay. University of Chicago can wait six months. I guess three PhDs would be a bit much." Jennifer had to smile. "I promise. Six months to work with you."

"Sign this non-disclosure agreement."

Jennifer signed it.

"Welcome to the Stargate Program." Carson looked like he was handing Jennifer a Nobel Prize.

_The Stargate was discovered in Ancient Egypt…_

* * *

**ANCIENT OUTPOST-ANTARCTICA**

Two months later, Jennifer was in McMurdo Air Force Base, Antarctica. _The South Pole._ Her head was still spinning. She did not sleep for a couple of days after Carson handed her that packet. He ended up sleeping on her couch that night after falling asleep in front of the television. Jennifer was so engrossed she forgot about him. It was a good thing they were basically family or his pride never would have recovered.

Jennifer went through hours of orientation. She learned about the Ancients, Goa'uld, the Stargate and more information than her genius brain could process. She fell into an exhausted sleep each night, passing out when her head hit the pillow. Carson had gone back the day after dropping this bomb on her, so she could not talk to him. He gave her security clearance to look at his information on the genetic ability some people must have to activate Ancient technology. It was obviously genetic, but he could not get the gene isolated or find out all that it did. Jennifer had a lot of ideas and a couple of short experiments she was dying to run. Now that she was so close to the base, the adrenaline was pumping throughout her system causing her to physically shake.

"He is a hotty," said the voice of a female scientist waiting along with Jennifer to fly to the Ancient Outpost, which was buried deep below the Antarctic ice.

"Definitely Maverick," said the second woman, who was much older.

Jennifer glanced around to see who they were talking about and noticed a tall pilot carrying a helmet under his left arm talking with another soldier. His hair was longer than she thought the military allowed. Her father had been a Reservist most of her life and kept his hair tightly cropped. The man was handsome like Maverick from Top Gun, but Jennifer always loved his Radio Intercept Operator, Goose._ Cute with brains over gorgeous with brawn any day._

It appeared the pilot felt the women looking at him because he looked their way and smiled. Jennifer returned the smile not knowing why except that the soldier looked friendly and her father always told her to respect soldiers. _These men risk their lives for you and get nothing in return. The least you can do is show them respect._ The pilot walked toward them. Jennifer heard the two women behind her making noises that said they were clearly annoyed that the man noticed the young blond over either of them.

"Good morning," he said smiling broadly at Jennifer and then the other scientists. There were four of them flying to the Outpost today; three scientist who were returning and Jennifer. "I am Major John Sheppard. Since there are four of you, one will need to sit up front with me. Who will it be?"

No one said anything because they all experienced Major Sheppard's piloting and got sick enough without being up front. The Major like all the pilots resented being chauffeurs and usually made the ride pretty rough on the scientists.

"I've never flown in a chopper before, I'll do it," Jennifer spoke up with some snorts coming from the women behind her. The young genius was used to being disliked for being smarter than her classmates and for being blond. The physician hoped some day to find a place where she did fit in; hoping that this might be the place. _So far the scientists were the stereotypical, no-social-skills variety._ _At least I get to work with Carson, so who cares if anyone else likes me or not._

"First time. It's been a long time since I've been with a girl with her first time. I'll try to take it easy on you." John smiled slyly and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm very excited. I don't get motion sickness, so don't worry about taking it easy." Jennifer had pulled on her personal backpack and grabbed her computer bag. Although she was terrified of heights, flying did not bother her.

John laughed because she obviously was as clueless as all the geeks and nerds he had been flying for the last few months. "Okay, well I'll throw everything I have at you…" She was pretty with long blond hair pulled back into a ponytail and bright brown eyes. Her smile was really sweet.

"Well, I'm not sure if my companions will be too happy with that." Jennifer heard the male scientist say he hated the fly boys trying to make him puke all the time._ Yup, she is definitely __**sweet**__ and that's not your type, Sheppard._

"Oh, they've all done this before. They can handle it," John said. "Let's get going shall we."

Everyone grabbed their stuff and followed John and Jennifer out of the hanger to the waiting helicopter.

"So, do you have a name?"

"Yes." For some reason, Jennifer wanted to tease this man. _He seems like a friendly face._

"You going to share it?"

"Maybe?" Jennifer laughed. "It's Jennifer. Jennifer Keller." She reached out a hand to shake his.

"Not a doctor?" He said shaking her hand. _She seemed to be genuinely friendly._ Usually women only looked at him because he was handsome, which did not upset him or they did not notice him at all. _I hate scientists._

"Yes, I'm a doctor. A medical doctor and a scientist." Jennifer learned that saying you were a _doctor_ seemed to be very important to everyone she ran into. It was a formal environment because of the military with few people using first names. The young doctor felt like she was trying to prove herself all over again back in medical school at the age of fifteen.

"So do you have like two degrees?"

"Three actually," she said blushing.

"Wow!" John was speechless. She had three degrees and still took time to talk to him. _Maybe I shouldn't dismiss her too quickly because she looks so young and sweet._

They needed to get loaded in the chopper and John had his preflight to do, so he could not talk to this intriguing young woman for several minutes.

Once they were airborne John addressed them. "We will be flying at about 150 km/hr and should arrive at your research station in twenty minutes. I hope you enjoy your flight on Sheppard Air. In-flight snacks will consist of Popsicles and the movie is March of the Penguins."

Jennifer laughed at his deadpan delivery. "I do love penguins, but it's too cold for Popsicles. I could use something better than that."

"I'm sure you brainiacs will have good food to keep you thinking." John glanced at Jennifer who was staring all around. "Never been to the South Pole before, Doctor Keller?"

"Please, call me Jennifer. I'm so sick of the formality. Among the scientists it's just to stick a title in everyone's face and remind each other how smart you are." Jennifer could not believe she said it, but felt at ease talking to the Major.

"Then call me John, Jennifer."

"Oh no, you're a Major. My father taught me enough about respecting the military to know that if you get to the rank of Major you really deserved it. You should be very proud, _Major_." Jennifer emphasized the rank one last time with a big smile on her face.

"I must say you don't sound like the other scientists I've been hauling back and forth. What are you doing out here anyways?"

"Thank you and I can't tell you, Major, without having to kill you afterward." Jennifer could not stop smiling. Not because of the man next to her in particular but because of the entire adventure so far. The landscape was beautiful. It was untouched and not spoiled by people like most of the planet. She also got the feeling this man would be a friend.

"Since you said you were a medical doctor, I take it you can follow through on that threat?" John smiled back.

"Most definitely. So Major, how long have you been in the Air Force?" Jennifer asked. From then on, they discussed their paths to being where they were right now. John was a career military officer who flew everything in the Air Force except the Space Shuttle and loved flying in the Antarctic.

When they landed, Jennifer had to admit she was sad to say good-bye to the Major. Her companions were grudgingly happy that she kept Sheppard from making them sick.

"Well, Doc, the next time you are back at McMurdo, let's catch up for some food in the mess hall," John said.

"Sure. Thanks for the safe flight and I hope you have a good one back." Jennifer grabbed her bags and shook his hand before she left.

_Wow, she is something. Sweet, polite, funny and pretty. Those nerds won't know what hit them._ He laughed and shook his head as he climbed back in his chopper.

* * *

The next few days of getting settled and getting her research started had her fully occupied, only grabbing food when Carson dragged her off. Meeting _the_ Doctor Daniel Jackson and Doctor Elizabeth Weir left her feeling like she made a fool of herself in their presence. She did not meet the head of Research, Doctor Rodney McKay, however. According to Carson, he was a real pain in the ass. His arrogance and angry outbursts were legendary around the SGC, so Carson warned her to come to him immediately if Doctor McKay should ever yell at her. Her friend said he would not tolerate it. Jennifer laughed at his protectiveness. Going to school at Harvard and MIT, two of the most prestigious schools in the world, she knew how to handle arrogant jerks.

Jennifer had finally isolated the gene that caused Ancient Technology Activation (ATA). Carson was beside himself with happiness as he ran toward Elizabeth's office. The gene was actually present in everyone but not active. This would make it much easier for Jennifer to develop a gene therapy because she only needed to figure out what turns the gene on as opposed to creating a new one. _All this done in three days._ She was very proud of herself and in a great mood when she heard an angry shout behind her.

"Carson!" The man who yelled was wearing a bright orange fleece. He was fairly tall with light brown hair and brilliant blue eyes. Jennifer had not seen him around before.

"He's obviously not here," the doctor said with a slight smile on her face.

"What?" Rodney looked at the young woman walking toward him. She was short with long blond hair in twin braids, brown eyes and looked like she just graduated high school._ Must be a new lab technician._ "Where is he?"

"Went to see Doctor Weir. Can I help you?" Jennifer had now stopped in front of him looking up because the top of her head came up to his nose.

"I doubt it, Barbie."

"Barbie?" _Did he just call me Barbie?_

Rodney turned to leave. _Great Elizabeth's office is on the other side of the base._

"Excuse me, but I can honestly say if you translated Barbie's dimensions into a real woman she would be much taller than me and more… how do I put it… _chesty-er_." Jennifer had no idea what made her say that, but she thought he was cute. _Cute and brainy, perhaps?_

"What?" Rodney turned back around to look at the little pixy standing behind him. Since she mentioned her chest, he looked there to find a slight curve hidden behind a thick, white sweater.

"If you are going to throw sexist insults out, you should at least have them match the person you are insulting. Now try for a shorter blond?" Jennifer was trying not to laugh hysterically at the confused look on the man's face. _He is actually thinking of a new insult._

"Fine! Tinkerbelle!" It was the only short blond that came to mind.

"Tinkerbelle? That's the best you can do? Are you sure you're smart enough to be here? Carson said they were very selective in who got to come here. While I am petite, Tinkerbelle has more curves than Barbie. You need to work on your insults Doctor…" Jennifer left it hanging as she raised an eyebrow staring into his bright blue eyes waiting for him to give her his name.

_She is really pretty_, Rodney thought. _Why is she staring at me?_

"Okay. I know social skills are really lacking around here, but now you are supposed to tell me your name, I'll tell you mine and we'll shake hands." Jennifer spoke slowly like he was four.

_What a pretty smile she has and beautiful eyes._ Rodney was staring like an idiot now. All annoyance with Doctor Beckett was long gone.

"Hello are you still there?" Jennifer waved her hand in front of his face.

"What? Oh. I'm Rodney. McKay. Rodney McKay. Doctor Rodney McKay," he stammered.

"You're _the_ _Great_ Rodney McKay. Wow, I'm honored. I have not met any ogres before but you are more handsome than I imagined they would be." Jennifer was really surprised this handsome man was the same one Carson described.

Rodney's face flamed red as his large hand took the smaller one being offered. _Her skin is very soft._

At that moment, a couple of laughing doctors entered the lab interrupting their moment.

"I should find Carson. I'll… I… Um... I'll just go," Rodney stammered as he quickly left the lab. His encounter with the beautiful young lab technician had wiped his years of super genius intelligence completely out of his brain. _That's never happened before. She's just a girl nothing special._ Some part of his mind felt that was going to be the most inaccurate thought he would ever have.

* * *

Rodney walked in on an extremely excited Carson, Daniel, and Elizabeth. "Did I miss the party?" He was still recovering from his encounter with the enchanting young woman. He realized he did not get her name. _Well, not a lot of places to hide around here, so I will see her again._

"Doctor Keller isolated the gene that causes ATA." Carson was bouncing on his feet.

"Oh, your superstar protégé." Rodney heard Carson gushing about Keller for months but had not been introduced to this amazing MD/double-PhD.

"Yes, the gene is apparently present in everyone and active in certain people. There is no probability of who will have it active or not," Carson said barely containing his excitement.

"So, your protégé figured this out in a few days?" Rodney said annoyed. "Perhaps I should get tested again to make sure you didn't screw it up?"

"We need to present this data as soon as possible. Will Doctor Keller be able to discuss this in the morning?" Elizabeth asked.

"Absolutely, we'll have a presentation ready." Carson took off back toward his lab.

"Rodney, did you find out any more about the chair today?" Elizabeth and Rodney began to talk about the chair and Daniel left to continue his search for the gate address of Atlantis.

* * *

That night, a smiling face with bright tawny eyes and long blond hair haunted his dreams. He had not had so much of a distraction while trying to sleep since the time Samantha Carter kissed him many years ago. Women never usually made it far enough past his defenses to haunt his dreams especially after such a short interaction. A very grouchy Rodney McKay made his way to get coffee before the presentation by the Medical Team. Rodney had no interest in medicine or _their_ research, which he thought was not real science. He usually did not go to their talks but this one affected his own department. The ability to interface with Ancient technology was critical to his work. If this _amazing doctor_ who arrived this past week was capable of isolating the gene so quickly, McKay doubted everything Beckett and his team had done before. Rodney usually tore people apart during these presentations and was primed to do battle with Beckett's protégé.

He noticed the beautiful technician standing near Carson and some other doctors. He had no idea which one was the _infamous_ _Doctor Keller_. Other than Carson he had few interactions with the medical staff. When the beautiful woman turned and saw him, a big smile spread over her face. She stepped away from the other doctors and approached him.

_Looks like Doctor McKay came after all._ Carson had said Rodney might not show up because he hated medical research, but Jennifer thought he would based on their interaction the previous night.

"Good morning, Doctor McKay," she said sweetly taking a sip of her coffee. "Did you think up any colorful names for me last night?"

"No, I was thinking about something else. No time to research flat-chested blond characters," Rodney said. Her eyebrows rose and Rodney turned red. "Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't… It's just you said… I mean..."

Carson came over to rescue Rodney at that moment because he saw Jennifer talking to the astrophysicist and was concerned for his friend. He knew he had been bragging and also knew McKay had come hoping to take her down like he always did with the younger scientists. Carson really wanted to protect Jennifer from him, but they seemed to actually be getting along. McKay was stuttering and bright red with Jennifer blushing as well. If he did not know either of them, he would think they were flirting. _But McKay has no social skills to flirt and Jennifer is too sweet._

"Rodney," Carson said.

"Carson," the red-faced man said trying to recover, "So where is this great protégé of yours? I hope he has his act together because I don't usually waste my time on your stuff."

_Wasn't he talking to her?_ Carson looked at Jennifer who looked confused as well but Rodney was called away by Elizabeth.

"Didn't you tell Rodney who you were?" Carson asked.

"Oh my Gosh! I don't think I did. He came into the lab last night and we had an… interesting conversation." Jennifer put her hands over her mouth. "I didn't tell him my name. I guess I better be on top of my game this morning."

Elizabeth stood up saying, "Let's get this started. Doctor Beckett, do you have anything to say before Doctor Keller begins?"

"Only that I get all the credit for the recruitment." Carson smiled as some people chuckled.

Jennifer stood up and looked at the standing room only crowd. It appeared everyone on the base outside of the military was here.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Jennifer Keller for those of you who I have not met." She deliberately did not look at Rodney.

_What the hell was this? Why didn't she say who she was?_ The combination of lack of sleep because of this woman and the fact that she deliberately did not reveal her identity made Rodney angry.

"I'd like to recap what we know so far about Ancient Technology Activation for any of you who are not as interested in it as some of us." There were a few chuckles around the room. "We know there is a random sub-set of the population that is capable of using ancient technology. We know that both physical contact and mental concentration are required to activate certain devices."

"Excuse me, Doctor Keller." Rodney said her name like it was a dirty word. People groaned because the physicist always started his interrupts with this phrase.

"Of course Doctor McKay and thank you for reminding me that I forgot to let everyone know that this is an _informal_ presentation and _interruptions_ are welcomed." Jennifer smiled sweetly at Rodney who was seated next to Carson who was glaring at him.

"How do you know this is a random characteristic?" Rodney was not happy that he could not operation Ancient Technology and was desperately trying to find some negative characteristic of the folks who could use the technology. Something had to explain to his massive ego why the smartest man on the planet could not operate the stinking chair on this base.

"Thank you for asking, Doctor McKay. I used a metadata analysis tool to look at data gathered on the characteristics of all the known people who can use the technology for any commonality among them. I ran it twice. Once at the SGC and then when I got here. I must say the computing system here is far superior to the SGC, but I ended up with the same result. There is _nothing_ to predict who will be able to use Ancient tech and who will not. Does that answer your question, Doctor McKay?" Jennifer's voice dripped with honey. She handled obnoxious jerks for the last ten years, learning quickly in medical school at Harvard University.

Everyone who knew Doctor McKay in the room was in awe of this petite woman who looked no older than 20 and the way she was handling him; sweet voice, stroking his ego, deferring to him. She was a professional. Carson could not be prouder.

"I'd love to see your analysis." Rodney could not believe she would have taken the time to analyze the data. _She's just a medical researcher, not a real scientist._

"We can meet to discuss my analysis after this presentation, Doctor McKay. If there are no more questions right now, I'd like to continue. I left off with the physical and mental requirements to activate Ancient technology, didn't I?" She looked to Carson for confirmation and he nodded. Jennifer did not want to treat Doctor McKay like he was some obnoxious jerk because she saw his confusion and uncertainty during their brief conversations. _Apparently, he was pretty obnoxious, though. __Hopefully, he won't hate me after this because he is cute and I'd love to get to know him better._

Rodney nodded. He hated that she was being nice and hoped she would scream at him like Samantha Carter so he would be able to scream back. This adorable woman who smiled sweetly at him was causing all kinds of weird emotions to circle in his head.

"This pointed to a genetic cause for these traits. Several of my colleagues have been searching for a gene that could control Ancient technology for some time now and I would like to tell you that I isolated this gene yesterday." A round of gasps and several '_great job_' comments filled the room.

"After all this time, you show up and isolate it _just like that_." Rodney did not want to believe that this woman was some type of genius. _Geniuses do not become medical doctors. It's a waste of intelligence._

"I can assure you that a lot of hard work was done before I got here and I'd like to publicly thank everyone." Jennifer hated to be the center of attention and to have anyone accuse her of arrogance. McKay made it sound like the others were incompetent.

Rodney was rolling his eyes. _Why would she possible care about those morons? They obviously can't keep up with her._

"Nonsense." Carson jumped in. "You and you alone decided to look closely at an area on chromosome thirteen that controls certain neural pathways in the body."

"Fine. But it was a lucky guess. Anyways, as Carson mentioned we isolated this gene in a region often involved in the control of conscious thought. People with an active ATA gene as we have decided to call it, are expressing some type of protein that interfaces physically with the device as well as a mental thought to make it work. It is the mental piece that needs a lot more exploration."

"Wait a minute." Rodney jumped in again. Several people shifted uncomfortably in their seats. Doctor Jackson glanced at Doctor Weir. Whenever Rodney said '_wait a minute_' he was about to tear into someone for at least another five minutes. Doctor Keller was holding up admirably to Rodney's annoying interruptions, but he had not really gotten going like they knew he could. "What about this protein you mentioned? Can't you just get everyone to produce it?"

"I'm afraid it is not that simple, Doctor McKay." Jennifer was beginning to think he was deliberately coming up with silly things now to interrupt her. "A gene therapy to do just that is my next project, but I should let everyone now that can take years and all gene therapies that have been developed so far do not work in half the population that gets the treatment."

"We can discuss how you came up with that number in a moment, Doctor Keller." Rodney's eyes finally made direct contact with hers. Until this point he was glancing around the room when he made his comments or asked his questions. Under his intense blue gaze, Jennifer felt her first twinge of genuine annoyance.

"Doctor McKay, I do not wish to diminish your questions, which are all valid, but we have a great many people in this room to hear what I've found out about the ATA gene in the last three days. In order to respect their time, I have to ask you to hold some of the off-topic questions until the end."

"Off-topic. Making a statement about something not working in half the population receiving a gene therapy doesn't make me feel good about your data analysis skills."

"48.3, Doctor McKay," Jennifer said coolly staring at him.

"What?" Rodney said, confused.

"The correct statistic is 48.3 percent of the population receiving a gene therapy is effected by it. I did not think the majority of the audience wanted the precise number, but I forgot I am working with a more detail-oriented crowd than usual and need to be exact. I apologize." Jennifer had just about had enough. _He was now going to jump on every word. _It had been a long time since she lost her temper. If she was honest, this had nothing to do with her data. She was getting angry because she thought they hit it off last night and now he was treating her like his reputation predicted he would. On a personal level she was disappointed.

"Wha… um… thank you for being precise. What about the protein?" Rodney tried to remember what started this discussion.

"We already know if someone's blood or cells touch the ancient device or even the protein itself that is produced in ATA carriers, it does not cause the device to operate. I believe several people tried doing this to the chair in the past." A lot of people laughed. Jennifer read in an early report that blood was put on the chair but nothing happened.

"The Ancients designed this to be used by Ancients only. Living Ancients. If someone captured one of them and killed them, the technology would not work," Doctor Jackson added. He thought Doctor Keller was an extremely intelligent and beautiful woman who had taken enough of McKay's crap. "It must be a live person."

"Thank you Doctor Jackson. That's a great explanation. You must be alive and I am going to say conscious as well, but that is a theory that I need to investigate further."

"That takes us back to the gene being in the region related to neurological activity," Carson stated.

"This is all well and good, but we need to be able to use this technology. When is _medical_ going to make that happen?" Doctor Peter Kavanaugh said in an arrogant voice.

"Weren't you listening, Kavanaugh. She said she's working on the gene therapy and that is doesn't work in everyone. Pay attention," McKay yelled at the scientist.

Jennifer was a surprised he yelled at the other man. _What was he yelling at him about, he's been ruder than that to me already?_

"Yes, Doctor Kavanaugh, it is our highest priority. There is, however, one more experiment I would like to run before I devote 100% of my time to the gene therapy. It involves the neurological component of Ancient Technology Activation. I believe an experiment was run involving an unconscious person with the active gene being given Ancient tech to touch and nothing happening. So to reinforce Doctor Jackson's statement, the Ancients designed their devices to be activated by a live, conscious person I believe."

Rodney had to admit he was impressed with the young doctor. She had not yet cracked under the pressure, but he still could not hold in his annoyance with this whole ATA issue. There was also the huge grin Doctor Jackson gave her to anger him some more. "Can you get back to your experiment? As you said before, everyone is busy and we need to stay on-topic."

"Yes, Doctor McKay." she basically spat out his name in annoyance. "The other experiment will involve borrowing a couple of _your_ engineers to help recalibrate the scanner in the lab."

"Recalibrate?"

"I would like to see if we could pick up some type of change in the electrical current that naturally runs through the human body because someone is activating an ancient device."

Rodney's genius mind was off and running because this was something in his field. "If we find something, then we could recreate it and activate the technology without the gene."

His enthusiasm lit his face up and Jennifer thought he was too cute to hold a grudge against him. "That's my theory. I have to say it's probably a long-shot because the human brain is extremely complex and I am quite certain the Ancients would build in a fail safe to counteract this as well."

"Yes," Carson added. "Have to protect our genetic superiority."

Rodney was already standing up. "You are hardly a superior being, Carson. Doctor Keller, let's get to it then. There is nothing more important than getting us the ability to use this technology."

Suddenly everything clicked for Jennifer. _Rodney was upset that he could not use Ancient technology. He was like a little kid who was not able to play with the big kids. _Jennifer tried not to laugh remembering the pang of disappointment she felt when she could not activate a device.

"Thank you for your enthusiasm Doctor McKay. Are there questions from anyone else?"

With that, the meeting broke up. A very impressed Carson Beckett waited for Jennifer to field a couple private questions from Daniel and Elizabeth. He overheard Daniel tell her that he never saw anyone _handle_ McKay like that. She was an excellent addition to the team just for that fact alone. Carson beamed.

Rodney was pacing in the hall with Peter Grodin. If this worked, he would not have to spend his time convincing the annoying Scot to work with him in the chair room. Seeing Doctor Keller exit with Carson and a few other doctors huddled around her caused a flash of the same emotion that Rodney McKay felt when Daniel was grinning at her. He was jealous. For some reason, he wanted to be the only one to spend time with her. _That's stupid. You just met yesterday._

"Hello, I'm Peter Grodin." The Brit stepped up to Jennifer extending his hand.

"Doctor Grodin, its nice to meet you." Jennifer smiled at the handsome engineer and shook his hand. Another flash of jealousy went through Rodney.

"Let's go. We can do the introductions on the way," Rodney growled.

Jennifer was confused. He had been really enthusiastic and now he was annoyed again. _Trying to figure him out was going to be a full-time job_, but she already had one. Feeling a bit disappointed Jennifer followed them down to her lab. _This is why I never had a boyfriend and don't want one. They are too much work. _She was surprised when the thoughts went through her head, but it was not the first time. Always having crushes on unattainable people was a normal in her life.

"So where did you study, Doctor Keller," Peter asked smiling.

"Harvard and MIT."

"Both?"

"Yes, I went to Harvard Medical School and Harvard University for my MD/PhD and then MIT for another PhD."

Rodney stopped and turned. "How old are you?"

"Excuse me, but asking a woman her age is not appropriate," Jennifer said coolly. _Here we go again._

"I don't think you should be asking that, Doctor McKay." Peter quickly echoed.

"How did you get two PhDs and an MD by your early twenties?" Rodney was very intrigued.

"By going to med school when I was fifteen." Jennifer had this conversation a million times so it was rote by now. _How old are you? You were fifteen when you went to med school?_

"Me too. Not med school but college," Rodney said. _Wow, we have something in common_, a hopeful voice in his brain said. The other said, _don't think you'd ever have a chance with a woman like her._

"You'll find a lot of people who went to university early around here. I was sixteen, myself," Peter added.

"That's… nice to know. I've never had anyone understand what it's like to be a kid with all these obnoxious young adults." A genuine smile crossed Jennifer's face as she looked up into his brown eyes and then Rodney's blue. "For the record, I'm twenty-five."

Rodney smiled back, a little. She was beautiful and smiling at him, so he could not help it.

Once in the lab, they began to work on the modification. Carson had the Ancient gene, so he would have to be the guinea pig. He was side tracked with Elizabeth for a moment, so they had to wait for his arrival.

"We should get a baseline from someone without an active gene. We'll need some piece of Ancient tech that someone with an active ATA gene can use," Jennifer said

"I've got something," Peter said leaving to go get something.

"You know," Rodney started. He was unsure how to carry on a conversation with her. He did not have a lot of practice in that. "You seem… _smarter_ than the other medical doctors. Two PhDs by twenty-five and an MD. Why… how did you become a doctor?"

Jennifer was taken back. _Did he just sort of compliment me?_ "My mother died when I was little after we were in a car accident. The emergency room doctor did not pay close enough attention to her head injury. After releasing her, a few days later she died. I suddenly was obsessed with anything medical after that. I love all science really. That's why I have the PhDs. My first was Biophysics from Harvard/MIT and my second was in Cellular and Molecular Biology concentrating in Neuroscience from MIT."

"That's a mouthful. Mine are astrophysics and mechanical engineering," Rodney said smiling. _Wow, I'm having a normal conversation with a woman._ "And I'm sorry about your mother. That must have been tough. My parents died after I was out of the house."

"Thanks and you should read my theses. The titles on those are really a mouthful," Jennifer laughed along with Rodney. They both realized they liked the sound of the other's laughter very much.

* * *

The next week resulted in a failed attempt to find anything unique about the brain waves of someone with an active gene. They were forced to try everyone on the base because Rodney did not trust Carson or Doctor Cove or Doctor Morales or Doctor Abbott or anyone else for that matter. Unfortunately, their brain waves were the same as someone concentrating really hard on something. No distinction at all to Rodney's massive disappointment. Jennifer was used to having failed experiments, so she decided to move on to developing the gene therapy.

Jennifer still could not understand what Rodney's reactions would be after spending so much time with him. He would be almost sweet and then suddenly sarcastic and hostile. _I am really glad I only dream about people from afar. Getting up close and personal is a lot of work. _Trying to think of Rodney as only a friend and not noticing how handsome he was when he smiled or the way his eyes twinkled as he laughed was difficult. Luckily, he only acted that way when they were alone.

It had been four weeks since her discovery of the gene, when Rodney came running into the cafeteria interrupting her lunch with Peter, Isabelle Dumais and Brian Hays. Since she started working with Peter and Rodney, she got to know most of his department. They were amazed that she willingly chose to collaborate with their arrogant boss.

"Jennifer!" He was slightly out of breath because he really did run through the complex. "He found it. Doctor Jackson found the address to dial Atlantis."

Everyone at the table started talking at once and the others in the mess hall, both civilian and military all jumped in as well. Atlantis was on a planet in the Pegasus galaxy. Jennifer was prepared to go to another solar system in the Milky Way, but another galaxy was beyond her comprehension. General O'Neill was coming to the base to be briefed the next morning.

That night, all work was suspended and everyone gathered in the cafeteria to celebrate all their hard work with hot chocolate and s'mores. No one wanted anything cold because it was too cold and the military would not allow alcohol. Jennifer found herself in conversation with Doctor Jackson about all his many adventures. Their laughter echoed around the room. She kept looking for Rodney but he did tell her he hated parties. When Jennifer looked at her watch, she saw it was 11pm. _Rodney never came._ Feeling disappointed even though he told her he was not coming, she headed for her room. _I always fall for people I can't have and who don't want to be anything more than friends. Oh well, at least with the crush on Rodney, I won't be busy thinking about anyone else. I'll get more work done._

Rodney worked up the courage to go to the little gathering to celebrate the discovery of Atlantis because he was excited and because Jennifer asked him to. Not a as a date, but as a colleague. When he got to the doorway he heard the familiar sound of Jennifer's laughter. As he scanned the crowd for her, he saw her laughing and smiling with Jackson. He turned and left without anyone seeing him. _You cannot compete with any other man for her affections so don't try. _

**TBC**

_

* * *

_


	2. Leaving the Ancient Outpost

**A/N: Thanks to scr1tno and dwparsnip for their support. I'm going to split things into smaller chapters. Sorry the first one was so long, thanks for the reviews and interest. I realize some people prefer stories that stay on Canon, so thanks for coming along on this ride.**

* * *

The next morning, Jennifer was walking through the base on her way to find her boss. She just heard from Doctor Dumais that Carson almost killed General O'Neill with a weapon fired from the chair. Rodney was pressuring him to sit in it and he kept refusing. Jennifer joined in with Rodney at breakfast teasing him and calling him a wimp so he finally did it.

Once again, she was confused with the physicist's behavior because he was his stereotypical aloof self today, which left her wondering what happened to the happy guy who found her yesterday to say they were going to Atlantis.

Seeing a familiar face staring blankly around the room, the young woman smiled brightly and called out, " Major Sheppard, what are you doing here?"

John looked around and recognized the face of the doctor he flew out over a month ago. "Jennifer, I'm really glad to see you. I could use a tour guide."

"I'm on my way to check in with a friend, so you can join me. I see you finally got security clearance," Jennifer said, walking them to the Chair room where they overheard Beckett talking to a couple of people.

"The second I shut my eyes, I could see. I felt power I've never had before. I had it dancing all across the sky. It was magical, it really was," he said, laughing. "They're lucky. I don't know where it came from. I just tried to concentrate and the drone shut itself down."

"So you were the one," the pilot said angrily.

Carson turned nervously looking from the Major to Jennifer and back again. "Me?"

Sheppard stepped onto the Chair platform somewhat threateningly. "You were the one who fired that thing at me."

"Uh-oh! Major…" Jennifer stepped closer to Sheppard in case he was going to take a swing at her friend.

Carson cut her off saying, "Look we're doing research; working with technology that's light years beyond us and we make mistakes. I'm incredibly, incredibly sorry."

"Well, next time just be a little more careful, okay?" John relented because the man looked genuinely sorry. _Technology that's light years beyond us, what's that mean?_

"That's what I said." Carson sighed in relief and sagged slightly.

"Oh, Carson, I'm so sorry. I think I challenged you into this," the younger doctor said.

"No, don't blame yourself, love."

"What the hell was that thing anyway?" The Air Force officer asked.

"You mean the drone?" Carson asked and continued after the pilot nodded. "The weapon the Ancients built to defend this outpost."

"The who?" _Ancients?_

Beckett looked at him suspiciously and then at Jennifer. "You do have security clearance to be here?"

Jennifer looked suspiciously at the handsome soldier as well.

"Yeah, yeah. General O'Neill just gave it to me," he said to calm their looks of concern.

"Then you don't even know about the Stargate?" Carson questioned in a surprised voice.

"The what?"

* * *

Jennifer and Carson then spent some time filling John in about the Stargate, the Ancients and travel to other planets, causing his head to spin.

"They think the gene was used as a sort of genetic key, if you will, so that only their kind could operate certain dangerous and powerful technologies," Carson continued to explain as John poked at the chair's control panel tentatively.

Walking around the Chair and looking at it with a fascinated look on his face, John said, "So some people have the same genes as these Ancients." _This is cool. I always knew we could travel through space._

"Well, the specific active gene is very rare. People with the active gene look just like we do. In fact they were first and we are the second evolution. The Ancients explored this galaxy for millions of years before ... Major, please don't," Carson shouted as the Major sat in the Chair.

"Don't…" Jennifer reached out like she could stop him with her hand.

"Come on, what are the odds of me having the same genes as these guys?" John Sheppard should have known better than to tempt fate, but it was in his nature to take risks. With a slight smirk, he sat in the chair. As he sat down, the Chair immediately lit up and reclined. He, Jennifer and Carson stared in amazement.

"Quite slim, actually. Carson, you better find Doctor Weir and Rodney," Keller said eying the Major with new interest. _No one got the Chair to work without concentrating really hard. He must have super genes or something._

"Doctor Weir!" Carson shouted looking at Jennifer, "Don't let him go anywhere."

"Don't worry, I won't."

The older physician hurried off leaving Keller and Sheppard, who was looking upwards nervously.

"Just don't think about anything, okay?" Jennifer tried to smile as she stepped closer to him. Sheppard, for once could think of nothing to say.

Beckett and the others ran to the Chair. Weir stopped and looked at Sheppard.

"Who is this?" The stunned voice of the expedition leader asked.

General Jack O'Neill stepped on to the dais and looked at Sheppard with an annoyed expression. "I said don't touch anything."

"Just ask them, I-I just sat down." _Oh shit, you are in trouble now._

"Major, think about where we are in the solar system." Rodney was pissed. First, he didn't sleep because he could see Jennifer and Daniel smiling and laughing all night, then O'Neill refused to let them use the ZPM to power the connection to Atlantis and now he found someone else who could operate the Chair. The fact that Jennifer was standing close to him and smiling only added to his immediate dislike of the soldier.

A holographic three-dimensional map of a star system appears above Sheppard's head. Everyone looked up. Doctor Weir and Jennifer smiled in delight. Sheppard looked at the map, frowning. "Did I do that?" he asked, glancing at Jennifer.

Jennifer was smiling and laughing. "Major, you are my new best friend! I have a dozen experiments to run on you."

John smiled at Jennifer saying, "Could be fun? Depends what they are."

Jennifer laughed more and Rodney glared at them both.

* * *

The entire base was gathered for a final debriefing before packing to head out for Atlantis after the incident with Major John Sheppard was sorted out. No one beside General O'Neill has made Ancient technology work just by touching and without any thought involved. John Sheppard was truly unique in that regard. Jennifer could not wait to get a blood sample and stick him under the scanner. She had asked Carson about the possibility of grabbing General O'Neill before he left, but was told _no_ immediately.

Jennifer sat with Peter and Carson. Rodney was part of the presentation with Elizabeth and Daniel and he had not spoken to her the rest of the day. She knew he was sulking about yet another person with the ability to activate Ancient technology and John _was_ superior to anyone but Jack O'Neill. She didn't get to talk to John after the incident either because Jackson, O'Neill and Weir pulled him away.

Daniel started the presentation explaining the location of the Pegasus galaxy. Then Rodney talked about how they would get there. Elizabeth wrapped things up.

"I want to make sure everyone is clear on the risk involved in this expedition. I am not sure if Doctor McKay fully explained the power needed to fuel this connection across galaxies. As it stands now, this will be a one way trip…" Elizabeth kept talking but Jennifer was not listening.

_One-way trip._ Those three words caused Jennifer's stomach to drop and her heart to break. _No way back as it stands now. I can't go._

Excitement permeated the corridors of the Ancient outpost as Jennifer walked dejectedly to Elizabeth Weir's office. She would start with the expedition leader._ Telling Carson will be too painful and Rodney..._ _Don't think about it or you'll cry._ In addition to the disappointment of not going, Jennifer was devastated at losing her friends.

"Doctor Keller, what can I do for you?" Elizabeth asked.

"I can't go, Doctor Weir," Jennifer said very softly.

"I'm sorry to hear that. We'll miss you and your skills greatly. Just your ability to bridge the gap between the different scientific disciplines is enough of a reason to want you with us, not to mention your immense intelligence. Is there anything I can do to change your mind?" Elizabeth knew this would be hard for the young woman. The leader hadn't spent much time with Jennifer, but knew the doctor was very close to her father and imagined it had to do with that, but she couldn't force anyone to go.

"Thank you for the kind words, Doctor Weir. I just can't leave my dad not knowing what happened to me. I'm all he has. I can't leave knowing all he'll ever get is some letter saying that I'm dead or missing. It's too…" Jennifer couldn't continue without crying.

"I understand. I'll ensure you remain with the SGC, if you'd like," Elizabeth said. "There's a transport out this evening for folks not going with us. I hope you don't mind leaving so soon, but we need to get the team identified as soon as possible."

"I understand and yes, I'd love to remain with the SGC. Thank you." Jennifer left feeling awful because now she would have to tell Rodney and Carson right away. Her stomach felt like she was going to be sick, so she decided to pack first and find them after.

* * *

Jennifer packed as quickly as she could. _It will be a long sad trip back to Chippewa Falls. _She decided to go home for the next week before the expedition left because the young doctor couldn't be around Cheyenne Mountain to say good-bye, again. _Better to get it over with now. _Carrying her two packs she headed up the corridor, pausing outside the mess hall where she saw Peter, Isabelle, and the other scientists she befriended.

"Doctor Keller, where are you going? Getting a jump start on Pegasus," Peter joked.

"I'm leaving," Jennifer said sadly.

"Leaving?" Isabelle said with her French accent.

"Yes, I can't leave my father." Jennifer was trying to be brave and not cry. If she cried here, she'd never get away from Carson without sobbing uncontrollably.

"Oui, I understand," Doctor Dumais said sadly.

"We'll miss you. No one has ever kept McKay in line like you have," Peterson added. He came around to give her a hug. "Not to mention we need your gene therapy."

"She's leaving and you only think about the work she won't finish. You're an idiot," Isabelle said, also hugging Jennifer. "Don't worry, Doctor McKay will get us back in touch with Earth. I have no doubt. It is not good-bye but farewell until we meet again."

"Yes, Isabelle's right. We'll be back. But we _will_ miss you," Peter said, hugging her.

"Good luck everyone," she said, turning and almost running out without any tears falling. She hated good-byes. The only time she ever had to say good-bye _forever_ was when her dad wheeled her into her mother's hospital room. Her mother was already past the point of recognizing them and Jennifer was upset already because her father had been fighting with the doctors. Jennifer had been injured in the accident as well and her pediatrician thought it would be too upsetting for her. The memory only heightened her sense of sorrow.

Thinking of saying good-bye to Rodney was really saying good-bye to a potential future but saying good-bye to Carson was nearly impossible to imagine. He was her best friend, mentor, big brother and favorite uncle all in one. A call came over the PA system saying a transport to McMurdo was leaving in twenty minutes. _Now or never._ Steeling herself for the conversations she went in search of the two men who occupied places of honor in her heart with tears starting to well up in her eyes.

As luck would have it or divine intervention, she found them together in Carson's office near the medical research lab, arguing as usual.

"Ah, Jennifer, love, come here and solve this debate I'm having with Rodney." Carson smiled brightly at her. She was often called in to mediate a dispute over something very trivial, usually about movies or TV shows.

Rodney who was usually clueless noticed her bags. "Heading back early so you can say good-bye to your father?"

"I am leaving on the transport in twenty minute, but…" She couldn't speak. Her voice was catching. The pressure in her eyes was too intense. _In a week they would be embarking on a journey that might kill them. Oh God, no. Don't cry. Don't cry._ Became the mantra she kept repeating.

Carson had known Jennifer for ten years and could tell immediately that there was something wrong. She looked terrified, so he stepped closer. "Jennifer, what's wrong?" His voice was full of so much concern, so much understanding that she felt her lips quiver as she tried to get her voice.

"What happened?" Rodney stepped forward and his voice was also full of concern.

The combination of the two sets of crystal blue eyes staring at her caused her knees to feel weak and her stomach to roil. She could not look at them. "I…" _Deep breathe. You can do this._ "I'm not going with you." She said and didn't cry, yet.

"What!" Both men shouted at the same time.

"This is really hard, Carson. I don't want to have a long drawn out good…" She could not say good-bye. The pressure and pain in her chest was back with a vengeance. Both men appeared to still be in shock, so they didn't speak.

"I want to wish you both luck. I'll…" Jennifer paused to glance at them. Their eyes were on her, still trying to process what was going on. "I need to catch my transport. I'm sure you'll find a way back to Earth. Elizabeth got me a job at the SGC, so I'll be…"

"Jennifer, you're right, we _will_ find a way back if that's what's troubling you. This is the City of the Ancestors. There'll be ZedPM's there. Don't be too concerned because Elizabeth said it was a one-way trip. She has to say that." Rodney smiled slightly.

"I'm sorry, Rodney, but I can't." Jennifer looked into the face of the man who haunted her dreams the last few weeks. It was a face full of confusion and what looked like… _fear?_

"Jennifer, please… we…we need you." _I need you. _Rodney had never begged for anything in his life. Here he was begging this beautiful young woman, who had totally captivated his heart, not to leave him. He had no claim whatsoever over her and really had no right to ask her to leave her father to go to another galaxy with him.

"Jennifer…" Carson started and then stopped. He should have expected this. She loved her father so much and felt responsible for him.

"Carson, you know I'm all my father has. I can't leave him." Jennifer choked a bit and felt tears well up. _Don't cry. Don't cry._

The PA announced that the flight was leaving in ten minutes.

"I have to go. I wish you both luck and hope… hope to see you again." Jennifer felt a single tear escape.

"Oh, love." Carson stepped toward her, raising his arms to hug her.

"I'm sorry. I can't. I… Thank you for everything," she said with her voice cracking. If Carson hugged her, she would be sobbing for hours in his arms. "I've sent you some ideas I have about the therapy."

Carson stared at his friend, a woman who was as much a part of his family as his own mother. "You take care of yourself. I can't tell you how much we'll miss you." He had to stop because he felt tears welling up.

"T-thank you, Carson. Please take care of each other, you two." She looked with watery eyes at Rodney, trying to memorize his features in case… _Don't think it._ "I need to go. I hope to see you both again."

Carson was crying silently. Jennifer turned and almost ran up the corridor. She could not contain the tears any longer. At this moment, she felt more alone than at any time in her life.

* * *

Rodney and Carson stood in stunned silence. Jennifer had a place of honor in each of their hearts.

"We've got to go after her," Rodney said. "She has to come with us."

"She loves her father, Rodney. She won't leave him," Carson answered. He wanted her to come, but there was no way.

"Let's go to Elizabeth." Rodney set off because he now had a mission.

Once they entered Elizabeth's office he didn't wait to start talking.

"Elizabeth we need Jennifer… I mean Doctor Keller on this mission." Rodney was walking back and forth, waving his hands around. "She has to develop the gene therapy. Who knows what we'll find out there? She's a brilliant scientist. She's smarter than most of my department. You know we need the absolute best on this mission."

"Rodney, everyone has to make their own decisions. We can't pressure anyone. Carson, you've known Jennifer for years. You know she how she feels about her father. She said she didn't want to leave him to never know what happened to her."

Rodney's mind caught on Elizabeth's phrase immediately. "Is that exactly what she said, she didn't want her father to not know what _happened_ to her?"

"Yes."

"Thank you, Elizabeth. Carson and I'll leave you to pack." Rodney pulled Carson with him out the door, leaving a stunned Elizabeth Weir behind.

"Rodney, are you going to tell me why you suddenly can't stop smiling?"

"I know how to get Jennifer to come with us." Rodney couldn't stop grinning. Once again he had the answer to an impossible problem.

"You do?" Carson was getting some of Rodney's enthusiasm.

"Absolutely."

**TBC**


	3. Mister Keller

**MGM owns all characters.**

**A/N: Thanks to scr1tno, dwparsnip and others for your support. These first few chapters were already written. It will be a little slower going forward. I'm glad you like it so far.**

* * *

Jennifer was more depressed than she could ever remember. She didn't really remember her mother's death because she was seven and had been injured in the accident herself, but she had to believe this felt almost as bad. The young woman cried on and off all the way back from Antarctica.

Her father was surprised with her arrival in the middle of the night since she said she'd be gone for six months. By her actions and manner, he could tell something had happened to her but the response he got was that she could not discuss it. Robert Keller knew she was doing something for the government; having served twenty years in the Navy and Naval reserves he knew a thing or two about classified projects. As her father, he still pressed her for details. When he asked what was next, she said she was being transferred to a new location. If he asked about Carson Beckett, the friendly Scotsman that he spoke to on the phone a few times, she got teary eyed and said he had a new assignment as well.

Jennifer had been moping around the house since she got home that Tuesday and now it was a warm Friday afternoon in mid-September, which was rare in their region of the country. Robert said he wanted to have a picnic so he sent his daughter out to the grocery store to get some steaks for grilling. As the man sat on the front porch with a bottle of beer waiting for his daughter to return a large black SUV pulled up the long dirt driveway. After it parked in front of the house two men exited. The taller of the two men had a black jacket and tan slacks; the other man was dressed in a dark blue jacket with dark pants.

"Mister Keller?" the taller man asked.

"Who's asking?" Both men looked extremely out of place and glanced around like they were looking for something. _What the hell is going on?_

"I'm Doctor Rodney McKay and this is Doctor Carson Beckett. We're colleagues of Jennifer's and were hoping she was here." Rodney looked at the man who must be Jennifer's father. He realized he didn't know what the man did for a living, but his broad shoulders and muscular arms pointed to something physical. Mister Keller looked much like his daughter except that his hair had a lot of grey, blending with the light color. The man had been relaxing on a porch swing with a beer, but got up to walk toward the step when Rodney spoke.

"Carson Beckett?" Robert had spoken several times to the Scotsman on the phone.

"Aye, it's nice to meet you in person, Mister Keller." Carson stepped on to the porch and shook the older man's hand.

"I knew she ran out on you. No way could she be that excited leaving here and then come back like her life was over without doing something wrong." Robert loved his daughter but felt she was hiding at school, getting more and more degrees instead of putting them to use in the real world.

"She didn't run out on us. Our research project took a different direction and Jennifer had an opportunity to move to another location and she did," Carson continued.

"Let me guess. She used me as an excuse?" Robert knew Jennifer felt responsible for him. He shook his head, noticing the other man who stood awkwardly at the bottom of the steps, he said. "Come on up, Rodney, is it? Would you guys like a beer?"

"Yes, sir," Rodney, for the first time in his life, had a feeling of what guys went through when they met _her_ father for the first time.

"I know who Carson is so who are you?" Robert asked in a very no-nonsense tone.

"I'm the head of research, sir."

"So, what has my little Jenny gotten herself into?"

"Well, sir, in order to tell you we need you to sign this form." Rodney pulled an envelope out of his jacket pocket.

* * *

Jennifer pulled up the driveway and saw a large, black SUV in front of the house. Her heart dropped. Something happened. _No!_ She screeched the car to a stop, kicking up dust and ran up the steps and through the door, screaming, "Dad!"

The house was empty. She heard her Dad yell, "We're out back, Jenny."

Jennifer raced through the house, holding her breath with a pain in her chest. Once she got to the back deck she came to a complete halt at the sight before her eyes. Carson was seated with her father at the picnic table on their deck having a beer and Rodney was leaning against the deck railing, drinking as well. The physicist stood up straight when he saw her.

"What's going on?" Jennifer gasped. She couldn't do good-byes all over again. _Why are they here?_

"Jennifer, I have to be honest. If someone told me I could travel to another galaxy, I'd say _hell yes_ as fast as I could. I love you more than anything, but I wouldn't pass up the adventure of a lifetime for you." Her father stood and walked over to her. "Your friends say they need you to go with them and came all the way here for their last few nights on Earth. I gotta be honest, guys, coming to Chippewa Falls to hunt down Jennifer is not what I'd want to do my last nights on Earth." He shot both men a suggestive look with raised eyebrows; both men blushed furiously.

"Dad!" Jennifer squealed.

"Relax, Jenny. They're taking my little girl to another galaxy. They're now part of the family whether they want to be or not. I'm going to grab those groceries so you can talk. I imagine you'll want to go out to eat the next couple of days because you'll be eating MRE's for a long time." With that, he walked back into the house.

Jennifer stared from Carson to Rodney and back again. "What're you doing here?"

"We came to get you, love. "Carson got up and walked toward here. "I couldn't think of another person on this planet that I'd want with me to explore the unknown than you. You're the smartest person I ever met."

Rodney coughed at that comment, eliciting a laugh from Jennifer and a glare from Carson.

"There is more to brains than fixing problems. I don't think you're smart enough to babysit a child for instance or even to ask a woman on a date so be quiet."

Rodney muttered an angry _hey_ but that was all he could manage. Seeing Jennifer with her hair in pigtails in a Harvard t-shirt and blue jeans literally took his breath away. _How could a woman be that beautiful in a t-shirt and jeans?_ He thought Samantha Carter was pretty, but Jennifer surpassed her in his mind. The physicist was certain it was because he hadn't seen Sam in a couple of years, but a little voice said that wasn't the case at all.

"How did you get permission to tell my father about this?"

"It was nothing. Just called in a favor," Rodney said. "Your father knows where you're going now…" He paused staring at her, awaiting her reply. Her brown eyes, which were open in shock, stared back. He had a sudden urge to step forward and grab her into a hug. _Where the hell did that come from?_ He'd never been a physical guy. Sure he'd been with women before, but always just to satisfy his needs. It took way too much time and energy that he could be devoting elsewhere for anything more. "You said you wouldn't go because your Dad wouldn't know what happened to you, so…"

Carson looked expectantly at her as well.

Jennifer looked at her two friends; one had been her friend and mentor for years and the other a recent addition who already was very special to her. "I… I'm going to another galaxy," she finally shouted. "I'm going to another _galaxy_." Jumping into Carson's arms and hugging him, Jennifer finally laughed.

Carson was trying to steady himself after having Jennifer basically jump on him, "Aye, thank you. If I had to experience Rodney's driving for nothing, I would have been very cross with you, young lady."

Jennifer pulled back from Carson to look at Rodney standing slightly behind the Scot. He looked really nervous. _Better not hug him._ "Thanks, Rodney. I'm sure you had a big part in getting Elizabeth to approve this."

"It was nothing and there's nothing wrong with my driving, Carson." Rodney was both terrified that Jennifer would hug him and saddened that she didn't.

Jennifer's father could be heard in the kitchen with the grocery bags. "I'd better go and help."

"We should say good-bye anyways. Your father was very nice to us," Carson said, looking at Rodney and nodding toward the house.

"Oh, yeah, we should be going." The genius didn't want to leave. He'd never felt welcomed by anyone like he'd been by Jennifer's father.

"You two are staying here with us unless you have family to visit," Jennifer's father said after the men told him they would be leaving.

"Dad, I'm sure they have better things to do than watch me pack." Jennifer was surprised her father was so adamant that they stay in Chippewa Falls. She honestly didn't think her Dad would care too much for a couple of scientist. Contrary to what Rodney said Carson was a scientist first and a physician second.

"Actually," Carson started, "we're just going to the hotel and then flying back to Colorado Springs in the morning."

"Nonsense. You boys will stay here with us. The house is big and I'd like to have some company. Besides, you boys are responsible for my little girl now. I'd like to get to know you better." Robert saw the affection they each had for his daughter. Carson was like a big brother according to Jennifer and he saw the look that passed over Rodney's face when Jennifer came out on the deck. _This man liked his daughter more than simple friendship._ Since they were going to be isolated, perhaps for the rest of their lives in this other galaxy, he would not pass up the opportunity to get to know the head of research.

"Dad, I'm twenty-five. I think I'm responsible for myself." Jennifer was getting red. She couldn't believe her father was embarrassing her like this. _And calling two men in their thirties boys._

"Yeah, right. Sorry. I forgot. You were just going to turn down the chance of a lifetime because you felt responsible for me. Great judgment, honey," her father said with his normal deadpan delivery.

"You're right. I never should have thought twice about leaving you," Jennifer shot back.

Carson couldn't help but laugh. Rodney, however, didn't want to give Mister Keller any reason to dislike him. The desire for this man to approve of him was so strong he actually kept his mouth shut.

"We really don't want to impose, sir," Rodney finally spoke. "We'll grab a hotel downtown and came come back tomorrow."

"I said you're staying. Now get your suitcases out of the car and I'll show you a couple of guest rooms you can use." Robert spoke with a voice that was meant to be obeyed.

Rodney quickly nodded and turned to head out to the SUV.

"I'll give him a hand," Carson said, leaving Jennifer alone with her father for the first time since he learned about what she was doing.

"Dad, are you sure about this?" Jennifer asked.

"Yes, I'd like to get to know them better and make sure they have the best of intentions involving my daughter."

"Dad!" Jennifer blushed, "I mean are you okay with me perhaps leaving…" She couldn't finish.

"I don't think you will be gone forever. That Rodney fellow is sure he will get you all back and Carson agrees. He told me Rodney is one of the smartest men on the planet. Nice to know someone is smarter than you," her Dad said, winking.

"There are a lot of people smarter than me on this expedition," she said as she put vegetables in the fridge.

"Good, none of the guys will be intimidated by you like the losers you went to medical school with." Robert always felt sorry for his daughter. She never had many close friends because she was so much smarter than everyone else. He drove her to classes at the university starting when she was eleven. By skipping through school to graduate high school at fifteen she was younger than her classmates. In college she didn't have any real friends only Carson and he was in Scotland or somewhere out West. Instead of being depressed, she managed to always smile and never complain just like her mother.

"Dad, please. I'm not going to another galaxy to… pick up men!" She couldn't believe her father would bring up her lack of a social life, especially with two men coming back in with their luggage to spend the night. _Rodney will be sleeping in my house._ That thought sent a strange sensation shooting through Jennifer.

* * *

After getting Rodney and Carson's luggage settled in guest rooms, they all came into the living room where Jennifer was staring at a wall of DVDs.

"Trying to decide what movies to take?" her father asked.

"Yes. I get one personal item, but I was hoping to copy a couple of my favorite movies onto my computer and some music and some pictures. Now that I think about it, I won't have any time to eat in the next couple of days." Laughing, Jennifer turned to look at them.

"Oh, I can take care of that," Rodney said. "Did you keep your SGC laptop?"

"Yes and you don't have to." Jennifer pointed to her computer bag with the SGC label on it.

"We came here to collect you. The least we can do is help you get ready." Rodney had already picked up her bag and was removing her laptop. "Where's the DVD player?"

"Over here." Jennifer opened the entertainment cabinet. Her father was an electronics buff and in addition to building cars, he liked to tinker with things. "Just make sure you don't mess it up or my Dad will find a way to the Pegasus Galaxy to kill us." Jennifer smiled.

"That's right. Took me several days to get the DVD, surround sound and HDTV all to work together." Her Dad walked over toward them with concern in his voice.

"Well, looks like you did everything right, sir. I won't have to change anything. I do need an output cable that it doesn't look like you have. Is there an electronics' store around here?" Rodney said, pulling his head out of the back of the cabinet and straightening up. As he stood, he caught a whiff of something flowery and glanced briefly at Jennifer who was standing next to him. _It must be from her; some type of soap or something._ He felt a strange sensation in his stomach and his mind suddenly went blank.

"I got a bunch of cables in my workshop in the basement. I'll show you," Robert said, turning to go.

Rodney stood a moment longer trying to remember where he was. Jennifer noticed he looked kind of confused. "Are you all right, Rodney?"

Rodney heard her voice and looked at her. She was even prettier up close. "What? Oh, cables. I'm coming, sir." He turned and followed her father out of the room.

Carson looked at his friend and saw the excitement on her face. He was very happy to have her coming with him. A small voice said he could be putting Jennifer in danger, but the louder voice said he wanted her by his side if they did face any problems.

"So, has anyone else backed out?" Jennifer asked.

"Not that I know of. You knew Harrison and Brinks decided not to go. Didn't want to leave Earth."

"Yes, I wonder if Major Sheppard is coming?" Jennifer thought about the Air Force soldier. She felt so at ease with him that she knew they would be good friends if they had more time to spend together. In the course of a couple of months, Jennifer went from one true friend, Carson, to having at least a half dozen: Peter Grodin, Isabelle Dumais, other scientists in Rodney's department, Rodney and Marine Sergeant Tommy Stackhouse. All of them were going on the expedition.

Excitement was building again in Jennifer's stomach. _Exploring an Ancient city in another galaxy, I can't wait._

"I don't know. He left with General O'Neill and didn't return the last week. I guess we'll have to wait and see."

Rodney returned with her dad, talking about some new electronic gadget. "Wait and see what?" He caught the end of the sentence.

"If Major Sheppard is going to come with us. I can't wait to do some experiments under the scanner with him," Jennifer said.

Rodney suddenly clenched his jaw. "I'm sure it was a fluke. He was probably thinking about relaxing."

"I don't think so. It reacted too quickly and he seemed genuinely surprised," Jennifer said oblivious to the set in Rodney's jaw or the look of anger in his eyes.

Her father noticed, however. Spending years in the Navy as a Chief Petty Officer, the equivalent of a Sergeant in the other branches of the service, he learned to read people really well. Rodney was obviously jealous of Jennifer talking with such admiration about this soldier. _Oh crap, I forgot she wasn't just going to be there with scientists._ "All right. I want to hear all about this Major. I don't want my little girl running around with a jarhead or a flyboy."

"Dad, they hate those nicknames and you know?"

"Getting pretty defensive. Now I really want to know about this guy. What branch of the service is he in?" He tried to get anger in his voice.

"He's in the Air Force, sir. A real pretty-boy pilot," Rodney spat out while he hooked the cable into Jennifer's computer and changed a few command code lines to accept feed from the DVD. He needed to write his compression program and then they could start copying DVDs.

"Enough! You stop being jealous of everyone who can work that Chair," she told Rodney, who audibly gulped, and to her father, "Stop acting like a protective father. A few minutes ago you wanted me to find someone to date!" Jennifer was not really thinking of what she was saying in mixed company.

Her father wanted to double over laughing. The look of shock on Rodney's face was priceless. Jennifer was working up her temper, which surprised most people since she was usually the most mild-mannered person you would ever meet. Like all parents, he knew how to push her buttons though.

"Hey, I've waited my whole life for you to have a boyfriend to bring home for me to harass. Since I won't be with you in this other galaxy, I need Rodney and Carson to look out for you with regards to men as well."

Jennifer turned scarlet. She was speechless. _What did her Dad just say?_

Rodney was shocked. _Jennifer never had a boyfriend? Is that what her father just said?_

"They are leaders of this expedition. They are not your proxies in another galaxy checking up on me!" Jennifer had never been angrier with her father or more humiliated. _He just told Carson and Rodney that I never had a boyfriend before._

"Mister Keller, I can assure you that we'll watch out for Jennifer," Carson said. The glare he received when Jennifer turned to look at him almost made him regret saying it.

"What? Listen, Doctor Beckett, you're not my keeper. I know…" Jennifer started only to be cut off by Carson.

"Jennifer, I've known you since you were fifteen. I've already been watching out for you since you got to the Outpost. It's not going to change in another galaxy. And yes my looking out for you includes the attention you get from men." Carson was going to stand his ground. He was as aware as her father of her lack of a social life and was going to ensure no hotshot soldier took advantage of her. _She's part of my family._

Rodney stood on the edge of this little debate in absolute shock. _Jennifer never had a boyfriend? _Honestly, he never had a real girlfriend either, not one he brought home to his family. His dating never lasted long enough to reach the girlfriend stage and usually always ended after they slept together. To learn that this perfect woman was as unskilled with relationships as him had made her more appealing and Rodney suddenly felt as protective of her as he was his own life.

Silence settled over the room. Jennifer was humiliated, angry and touched by Carson's concern all at the same time. If she was honest, she didn't know the first thing about having a relationship. Sure she was lonely and dreamed of having someone, but her education and research had been the most important things to her. _No time for relationships._

"Well, I'm hungry. Where do you want to go and eat?" Robert broke the silence.

Jennifer decided on a place that had her favorite foods: steak, hot wings, fried potato skins covered with melted cheese and bacon, fried cheese curds and a lot of food that was bad for your arteries. If these were her last meals on Earth, she was going to enjoy the food. Rodney and Carson agreed.

Jennifer climbed into the passenger seat of the rental SUV next to Rodney. She was still annoyed and mumbled, " I can't believe my father told my friends what a loser I am. Never having a boyfriend by age twenty-five."

"I don't think it says anything about you at all. It just proves my point that medical doctors and biological researchers are a bunch of idiots," Rodney said, starting the SUV while they waited for her Dad to lock up the house and Carson to find his wallet.

"Now I'm an idiot?" Jennifer glared at Rodney.

"What?" He realized what he just said. "Oh, no. Not you. You're a genius. The guys in school with you were idiots. I mean if there had been a woman like you in school with me, well, I wouldn't have let her be alone. I mean…" Rodney stopped talking again. _What am I saying? She's sitting next to me. You just said you would have asked her out in college. She'll want to know why not now. Because I'm a loser with women now and didn't realize it back then. Can't say that._ "Not that I wouldn't now… I mean to say… We work together… Its not right or even allowed." _Not entirely true, but she doesn't know that._

Luckily Carson and her Dad arrived to save Rodney. "Where are we going?" he asked, trying to regain his composure and program the GPS.

"That bloody thing almost got us killed," Carson complained.

"The GPS? What did it do to you, Carson?" Jennifer asked, recovering from Rodney's babbling comments. He basically said if he knew her when he was in college he would have asked her out, but not now because they are colleagues. _This sucks_, Jennifer thought and vowed then and there to forget the whole relationship thing. Rodney was her friend just like Carson.

"Rodney rewrote it so he could program it while the car was in motion. I thought he was going to kill us fiddling with the thing," Carson said.

"Stop complaining. If we listened to you we'd be in St Paul, by now," Rodney barked, trying not to look at Jennifer because his face felt very hot.

At the restaurant, Jennifer ended up in the booth next to Rodney with Carson and her dad across from them. They talked about movies and growing up in Scotland or Canada or Wisconsin. Her dad talked about the cars he'd built and other things he tinkered with. Jennifer had to admit she was nervous of how Rodney would treat her father. He could be an arrogant jerk more often than not. Her dad never went to college so she imagined Rodney would dismiss him entirely, but the genius surprised her. He showed great respect for her father and seemed to genuinely enjoy talking with him, laughing easily. The physicist seemed off-guard by the end of dinner. _Great, more to dream about. I already know I can't have you, please don't make it more depressing for me._

They left the restaurant around nine. Once they got home her Dad headed off to bed and then Carson left, leaving her and Rodney on the couch.

Rodney had set up the computer to download all her music library and pictures, which had completed. He was now loading DVD after DVD into the player. His modifications to the DVD player and laptop had the movies transmitting their data to her computer so quickly, they had an assembly line of Jennifer opening boxes and handing disc after disc to Rodney. The genius put them in the player, clicked a few buttons on the laptop and seemed to reach for the next disc immediately.

The TV was on with some reruns of _Star Trek_ in the background. "I like this one the best," Rodney said of the original _Star Trek_.

"_Next Generation_ for me all the way," Jennifer said. "I love Data."

"The yellow robot or Brent Spiner the actor?" Rodney said with slight disgust in his voice.

"I'll always take cute and brainy over brawny and dumb any day." Jennifer suddenly flushed at the implications. She took a glance at Rodney but he was clueless to realize she considered him cute.

"I love an intelligent woman over a bimbo any day. A beautiful smart blond." Rodney stopped and flushed realizing what he said. "Ahh… I mean… a different." _Shut up McKay! You have made a big enough fool out of yourself today already. _"I…" Rodney started again.

"It's getting late," Jennifer said yawning. _Better get out of here before you say something stupid in return._ "Goodnight, Rodney," Jennifer said, leaving him to continue to feed DVDs. "You will obviously have first dibs when we get there on the movies. I really appreciate this."

"Thanks. And goodnight, Jennifer," Rodney said, watching the most amazing woman he ever met head to her bedroom. The combination of Jennifer and bedroom caused an intense feeling in his groin. _Better learn to control that reaction or this is going to be a long expedition._

* * *

Her last full day on Earth went by too fast for Jennifer. They went out for a huge breakfast, a fast food lunch at Burger King and got pizza for dinner.

That evening, they were still copying the DVD collection. Jennifer couldn't believe how much fun she was having with Carson, Rodney and her dad. After her father embarrassed her the first evening it seemed as if he really did consider the men part of their family. He had them out in the garage looking at the latest car he was working on. She took the opportunity to walk around the house and decide on her one personal item. With Rodney's compression program she loaded all her pictures, music files, audio books and DVD movie collections onto their two computers. Rodney said he would uncompress them into larger computers once they got to Atlantis.

Finding herself in her bedroom, she kept looking at Scruffy Dog. It was an old stuffed animal she got from her mom and dad at their last Christmas together. _You're a genius recruited to serve in another galaxy. You could go there and never return to Earth and you want to bring a 20-year-old stuffed animal? You're pathetic._ She turned to look at other things, but kept coming back to that stuffed dog. It carried so many memories; it had to come with her. She picked it up and hurried downstairs to stuff it in her pack before anyone saw it.

Settling on the couch and continuing to change out DVDs she thought about what happened with Rodney yesterday. It appeared that she once again liked someone not interested in her. It was the story of her life. At least he seemed to like her as a friend, which was something.

The men all came in around eight-thirty. Jennifer had her bag near the door and was now watching _Galaxy Quest_.

"This is a great movie," Rodney said, sitting next to her on the couch. "Did the DVDs finish?"

"Yup, I figured I'd watch one since we've been loading and unloading them for twenty-four hours almost."

"Well, I'm really tired, so I'm turning in," Carson said as he headed to his room.

Jennifer's dad sat in the recliner. "So, Jenny, what'd you pick?"

"What?"

"For your personal item, what'd you pick?"

For some reason saying _I picked a stuffed animal_ in front of Rodney felt ridiculous. "Nothing special."

"Scruffy Dog," he said, embarrassing her yet again.

"Dad!"

"What's a Scruffy Dog?" Rodney asked, looking from Jennifer to her father.

"It's a stuffed dog she took everywhere with her. It's been to Antarctica. It might as well go to another galaxy."

"I brought a picture of my cat," Rodney said without any hint of embarrassment.

"Your cat?" Jennifer was surprised. She figured there was some gadget or something like that he would bring.

"Yes, not my current cat, but my last one. A big, white fluffy one." Rodney reached to scoop some M&Ms out of a bowl on the coffee table.

"It must have been a special cat?"

"She was," Rodney said around a mouthful of food.

"That's nice."

"Well, kids, I'm heading in. We'll have an early morning," Robert said getting up.

"Dad, wait. We should… you know." Jennifer didn't know how to say it.

"Well, come on. Let Rodney watch the movie in peace."

Jennifer and her dad went into the kitchen.

"Dad," Jennifer started but immediately got choked up.

"Jennifer, you and I both know that we're going to see each other again. If not here then with your mother so stop this. I spoke at length with Rodney and I know he'll get you back if you're stranded. It might take a while, but I know he'll do it. He's a good man, Jenny." Robert did have a lot to tell his little girl, but he was not that kind of a man. "I'll miss you but know you're in good hands."

Jennifer began to tear up. "Daddy." She threw her arms around his neck.

"I don't want you carrying on like this. I have plenty of things to keep me busy with around here. Who knows, when you get back I might have moved out of here. Gone to see the world."

"What? You'd never leave Wisconsin." Jennifer drew back, swiping at her tears.

"Without you to nag me, I might have a bit of freedom."

"Well, I should have gone to another galaxy sooner."

"Probably." Robert looked at his little girl with a different eye now. "You've always made me so proud of you."

"You're not… making this… easy. We still need to-to… say good-bye in the morning," Jennifer said, her voice breaking every few words.

"It'll be a simple one. I'll say my peace now and them I'm going to bed. I love you. You know that. I know you're smart, but sometimes you get mixed up about what's important. Don't try to save the world but neglect yourself. These men care about you or they wouldn't come here to collect you, don't dismiss that. You'll be in a potentially dangerous place and you can't go it alone." Robert was going to get upset if he didn't stop. In his gut, he knew she would come back and he knew these two men, who loved his little girl would protect her. Different types of love, but love nonetheless. "Now, I'm tired and need to get up early to send my little girl into outer space."

Jennifer couldn't stop the tears from flowing any longer. "Daddy, I'll always love you and I'll come back even if it takes years."

"I know, sweetie, I know." He gave her one last big hug and left.

Jennifer cleaned up her face and went back into the living room to sit with Rodney and finish watching the movie.

He smiled. "I promise we'll come back. It won't be as bad as we're planning for. The military is always prepared for the worse."

"I know. I trust you. I just didn't want my Dad to get some impersonal letter. I can't thank you and Carson enough for getting permission to tell him." Jennifer smiled a radiant grin at the scientist and he melted.

"Of course," he said, shifting uncomfortably.

They sat back to watch the rest of the movie. Jennifer fell asleep and her head slid onto Rodney's shoulder once, waking her up soon after. She looked embarrassed and left Rodney to dream of what might have happened if she did fall asleep with him on the couch. He had to shift once more in his seat.

* * *

The next morning was rainy, which Jennifer thought fit her emotions. She believed she would see her father again but it was not going to be easy to say good-bye. Her father told her he needed to talk to the _boys_ before they left. Jennifer glared at him, but didn't fight because she didn't want their last time together to end like that.

Robert Keller pulled the two doctors into the den, leaving Jennifer in the living room. "I might move to Colorado Springs just to be closer to your base. I won't let on I know anything to get you boys in trouble."

Once again, Rodney was not as clueless as he usually was. The penetrating gaze of Mister Keller told him he knew it was not normal protocol to tell families about these things. Looking sheepish, Rodney hung his head. "I wouldn't be in trouble. It would only set a precedent the General didn't want," Rodney said. "Jennifer'll be happy to know you're close to the SGC."

"Don't tell her. She won't want to think of her home being empty. I won't sell it. I'll keep it for her some day. If she wants it." Jennifer's father knew she wouldn't be able to let go of the house because of all the memories but he needed to get away. With his little girl in another galaxy, seeing her stuff was going to be hard. "I know how smart my little girl is and I'm sure you need her more than I do but I do wish I'd have more time to get to know you." Robert looked Rodney in the eye. "I know how you feel about her. She doesn't, so don't worry. You can tell her when you're ready. But, don't wait too long. I'm sure there will be a long line of men waiting to break into my little girl's heart."

He reached out to shake the hand of a totally stunned Rodney McKay and, after a second, decided to pull the physicist into a bear hug complete with a big slap on the back.

"I'll get her back, sir." Rodney finally managed after recovering from the older man's words and strong hug.

Carson watched this exchange with a stunned look. _Jennifer's dad noticed how Rodney looks at his daughter and isn't going to kill him? What a cool dad._

Robert reached out to shake Carson's hand and to wish him well. "I know you'll look out for her and I thank you for that," Robert said to Carson, who only nodded because he was close to tears. He felt Mister Keller was entrusting Jennifer to him and recognized the immense pressure that put on him.

When they all came to the living room, Jennifer noticed her friends both looked like they had done something wrong. Her brow furrowed, "Dad?"

"I just told them to protect you or else," he said and started smiling. "No sappy good-byes. We'll do it right here and you'll go with these boys and explore a new galaxy. Who would have thought I'd have my own little Starfleet cadet?"

"Don't you dare call me Doctor Crusher," Jennifer smiled back to her father. They loved _Star Trek_ and often compared themselves to the characters. Jennifer was upset Beverly Crusher was so old; otherwise the female doctor would have been a role model for her.

"Well, respect the soldiers and listen to them. They're there to save your life. Don't fall in love with some strange alien and most important, remember I love you." Robert paused. Noting how much she looked like her mother one more time, he pulled her into a big hug. He held her a little longer and tighter than he usually did and Jennifer returned the hug as long and hard, hearing a sniffle he pushed her back. "Now get out of here and save the universe." He smiled and turned, walking past the two men in the corridor and nodding to them before he retreated to the back porch.

Rodney went into the living room to collect Jennifer's bags. "Are you ready?"

"Yes." Jennifer smiled in spite of the tears rolling down her cheeks. "Atlantis, here we come."

TBC


	4. Departure

**MGM owns all characters except OCs.**

**Some dialogue taken from GateWorld.  
**

**Thanks dwparsnip and scr1tno for support. **

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Saturday evening Jennifer, Rodney and Carson arrived back at Cheyenne Mountain.

"I can't thank you guys enough for getting the approval to tell my dad about this," Jennifer said smiling broadly at Carson and Rodney.

"I had nothing to do with it. It was all Rodney," Carson said.

"Thank you, Rodney," Jennifer smiled directly at him and he felt his knees get weak.

"It was nothing. But… don't… I mean it's better not to… you know… say anything," Rodney said very suspiciously.

Jennifer's smile faded and she stared at Rodney causing him to avert his eyes and turn red. "You did ask permission, didn't you?"

Carson took this as his queue to leave. "Jennifer, I'll catch up with you in the Gateroom."

"Of course, its just... I'm not supposed to say… General O'Neill won't want it to get around. Everyone will want his or her families notified. Your Dad is ex-military…" Rodney stood up tall and jutted his chin out. "We need you, so I took initiative to make that happen."

Jennifer was really touched that Rodney would go to O'Neill for her because she heard the stories_. Jack O'Neill did not like Rodney because he insulted Samantha Carter and almost killed Teal'C._ _He must respect my abilities a lot._

"Well, thanks. I guess we should see Elizabeth," Jennifer said.

They went to Elizabeth Weir to make sure it was okay for Jennifer to still accompany them. Needless to say Elizabeth was excited about Jennifer's change of mind.

After changing into her uniform and checking on some experiments she had the SGC run while she was on her short vacation with her Dad, she made her way down to the preparation area. There were crates of everything you could imagine for a group of about 100 people for a year. She walked by pallets of freezers, washing machines, lab equipment, server racks with state-of-the-art computers, generators, medical supplies, food supplies, uniforms, and finally, weapons. Jennifer swallowed a little as she saw the familiar symbol for explosives on the crates. There were a lot of Marines milling about the area. Almost half the personnel would be soldiers, Elizabeth told them in Antarctica. At the Outpost, there were few soldiers but in a new galaxy, security was the number one priority. As Jennifer neared the Gateroom, she heard the familiar voice of the most obnoxious man she ever met Doctor Peter Kavanaugh.

"I don't really care what you think, grunt. My equipment is more important than your guns. Without my brains, this expedition would be doomed to fail. You guys are not in charge. We have a civilian, finally, to make sure things are done properly," Kavanaugh arrogantly said to several Marines nearby.

Jennifer was certain that they would have beaten him senseless if this was the schoolyard and he was some nerdy kid. The young doctor was feeling particularly invincible today; probably because Rodney, the most confident person she ever met, had confidence in her. "Hey, Doctor Kavanaugh! You owe these men an apology."

"Doctor Keller? I didn't think you were coming," Kavanaugh said, glancing past the soldiers who were turning to look at the woman. She recognized her friend, Tommy Stackhouse, one of the few Marines based on the Ancient Outpost in the crowd. He smiled as he saw her.

"I was told that my brains were the crucial ones around here and because I'm smarter than you, I'm not going to insult the soldiers who are here to protect us. You do realize they are required to save your life no matter how much of a jerk you are. They'll do it because they took an oath to protect us. You should be really glad they did because you might be in a lot of trouble otherwise," Jennifer walked closer to Peter and had to look up because he was a lot taller than her. The soldiers closed in around her, glaring at Kavanaugh. Stackhouse moved to stand next to Jennifer.

Unseen to her, Major John Sheppard walked upon the conversation. He smiled. She definitely had a lot of guts. This scientist was not as much of a pushover on the physical side as most of them. He stood at least a foot taller than the petite woman. John moved closer even though he knew the nerd would do anything to the beautiful doctor. If Kavanaugh tried anything, however, the Major and the five Marines would pummel him.

"I don't have to apologize! Just because you're some medical superstar doesn't make you more important than me," Kavanaugh glared at her and the soldiers. "Figures, though. All women get caught up with the whole men-in-uniform thing. Us brains never have a chance, right?"

"Apologize or you'll be sorry during your next check-up," Jennifer glared back at him. She refused to be intimidated because he was taller than her.

"You can't do anything?" Kavanaugh said a little uncertain.

"Another galaxy, anything could happen," Tommy said.

"Or you might accidentally have a freak accident in the field," a familiar voice sounded from behind Jennifer.

"Major Sheppard," she turned with a big grin on her face. If he were not in uniform and holding a P90, she would have hugged him.

"This is ridiculous," Kavanaugh said throwing his arms in the air. "I'm getting out of here."

"Don't be so rude, Kavanaugh," Jennifer said in a threatening voice.

Peter huffed past her and the soldiers that she now realized had filled in around her. Still smiling at Sheppard she stepped toward him with hand outstretched. "I see you decided to come as well."

"Wouldn't miss it. Especially with a uniform-loving, blond who defends my honor," John's eyes' twinkled as a grin filled his handsome face.

_Why can't I be interested in a smooth-talking soldier instead of a cranky scientist?_ "Not sure if you know Sergeant Stackhouse?" She turned to introduce the only two men she knew in the crowd. Tommy and all the Marines saluted immediately.

"At ease," John was never comfortable with the formality of command. He spent so much time in the field where saluting was kept to a minimum that he was often too relaxed in a formal setting.

"This is Major John Sheppard and I'm Doctor Jennifer Keller," she turned to the other four men she did not know.

"Sergeants Billy Markham, Dwayne Richards, Robert Warrington, and Steve Granger this is the brilliant Doctor Jennifer Keller. She identified the ancient gene in less than three days and is one of the nicest people you would ever meet," Tommy smiled, winking at her.

"Nice to meet you ma'am" sounded from all the men. Jennifer blushed furiously. "I wasn't very nice to Doctor Kavanaugh."

"He deserved it," Stackhouse said.

John Sheppard nodded to the men as they were introduced. Stackhouse and Markham looked pretty young, but the other three were obviously battle tested. "Nice to meet all of you. Doctor Keller, shouldn't we get moving?"

The Major closely watched the interactions between Stackhouse and Jennifer. The young Marine obviously had a crush on her and she was blushing when he complimented her. John felt jealous. It was not a guy-jealous-of-the-woman-he-wanted type of feeling. It was more of a wish he could be that young and carefree again.

As he and Jennifer made their way to the Gateroom with the others, he noticed the beautiful woman was getting a lot of glances. _Uh-oh, gonna have to play bad cop around her._ John wanted to watch out for her. He knew it had something to do with how sweet she looked and acted. _Seeing her stand up to a man twice her size in that Kavanaugh fellow showed me that she had more backbone than I thought. She can probably take care of herself, but I might as well help out._

Once in the crowded gateroom, Jennifer moved to stand with Carson and Peter Grodin.

"Jennifer, you're here," Peter said hugging her tightly. "I've got a lot of new people to introduce you to. Come here."

Peter put his arm around her and moved her toward a group of three men all about the same size. All were wearing the blue of Rodney's department whereas she was in yellow for medical.

"This is _the_ Doctor Jennifer Keller," Peter began.

"Okay, enough. The soldiers are already talking about me like I'm the second coming or something like that. I'm just a medical researcher and physician," she said firmly and then smiled to the three men.

"Fine!" Peter huffed smiling, "This is Doctor Brendan Gaul, Doctor Ben Abrams and Doctor Radek Zelenka."

"It's very nice to meet all of you," Jennifer smiled brightly shaking each of their hands. The men collectively smiled and sighed as she turned to watch Elizabeth come through the room.

Sheppard noticed the scientists drooling over the young doctor. _Gotta watch the scientist's too. Great. I'll be busy._ Then the expedition's military commander, Colonel Marshall Sumner walked past him followed by Doctor Weir

"Could I have everyone's attention please?" she said walking up the ramp and turning to face everyone as they gather round.

Jennifer moved back to Carson's side. "It's time," she breathed and her friend nodded back.

"Alright, here we go. We are about to try to make a connection. We have been unable to predict exactly how much power this is going to take and we may only get the one chance at this, so if we are able to achieve a stable wormhole, we're not gonna risk shutting the Gate down. We'll send in the M.A.L.P robot probe, check for viability and go. Everything in one shot. Now, every one of you volunteered for this mission and you represent over a dozen countries. You are the world's best and brightest; and in light of the adventure we are about to embark on, you are also the bravest. I hope we all return one day having discovered a whole new realm for humanity to explore, but as all of you know, we may never be able to return home. I'd like to offer you all one last chance to withdraw your participation, she paused a moment and after no one left, said, "Begin the dialing sequence."

Rodney held his breath in the control room looking down at Jennifer standing with Carson. _Jennifer, please don't leave. _The doctor remained smiling and chatting with her mentor, so he could breathe again. He really wanted to be down there especially after seeing her smiling with Major Sheppard, who decided to grace the mission with his presence. Grodin also had the nerve to hug her and introduce her to _his_ scientists. The cranky astrophysicist was left in a strange mood. On one hand he was so excited to go to Atlantis that he could hardly think, but on the other he was so jealous of the men ogling and touching _his_ Jennifer that he wanted to hit something. When Elizabeth returned, he decided to concentrate on the task at hand and forget his emotions entirely.

"This is it!" Elizabeth said excitedly looking at McKay, who was still looking into the Gateroom. " Rodney, you've got to calm down. It's embarrassing."

"Chevron seven encoded," the technician said.

"I've never been so excited in my entire life," the jealous man said. _It's true. I've never been so excited. It's just tempered by anger._

"Chevron eight is locked."

The gate established a wormhole as the familiar Kawoosh comes in and out of the Gate. Everyone applauds.

"Looks like no turning back now," Grodin said from Jennifer's left.

"That's right," Jennifer responded. Her excitement was tempered by a moment of sadness at leaving her father behind and some trepidation at what they were about to do. _Isolated in another galaxy in the city of the Ancients._ _What did I get myself into?_

After watching Elizabeth, a lot of soldiers, including her friends Sheppard, Stackhouse and Aiden Ford go through the Gate, Rodney joined them.

"Are you ready to go? You look uncertain," he asked Jennifer as he reached down to grab her pack and swing it over his shoulder. _Oh please don't back out now._

"Yes, I'm ready, but I was just thinking that everything will be different on the other side of the Gate," Jennifer said. "We will be all alone and totally dependent on each other."

Rodney was staring at her. _Is she saying that to me or to all of us?_

"That's why we have so many geniuses," Carson said jokingly.

"We might need them," Grodin responded.

As they started moving up to the Gate, Jennifer found herself next to Rodney. "So, what does it feel like?"

"Don't know," Rodney said.

"You've never gone through the Gate? You're the world expert on gate technology and wormholes and you've never been in one?"

"Do you know how to fix a heart attack?"

"Yes."

"Ever had one?" Rodney smiled because Jennifer was speechless. Then she smiled too.

"Touché, Doctor McKay," she laughed. "Shall we do this together?"

Rodney looked at the beautiful woman beside him who elicited emotions he had never experienced before. _What was going to happen to her, to me, to all of them on the other side? _Without thinking, he reached over to squeeze her hand. A look of shock and then a beautiful smile passed over her face. Turning her hand slightly, she returned the pressure.

"We go on three," McKay said sorry to let her hand go, but feeling very self-conscious. _Can't go through the gate holding hands._ "One, two, _three_." Jennifer and Rodney stepped through the Stargate together.

* * *

**A/N: I know the ending is fluffy, but I couldn't help myself. I appreciate the reviews. Now they will finally be in the Pegasus Galaxy.  
**


	5. Rising Part 1Atlantis Arrival

**MGM owns all the characters.**

**Some dialogue taken from GateWorld.**

**Thanks to the reviewers and my beta's dwparsnip and scr1tno.**

* * *

Walking through the Stargate gave Jennifer a feeling like her whole body was getting pins and needles from being asleep. Before anything else could register, she walked out into another galaxy. Looking around, she noticed Carson and Rodney flanking her as they did in the other Gateroom. Turning, she saw that this Stargate looked very different from the one on Earth. It looked modern even though it must have been millions of years older than that one. Taking a deep breath, the air smelled stale like it had been sealed for millennia. It was also cool and very dark until lights started coming on. Equipment and personnel continued to come through the gate at a steady pace. With a little over one hundred people on the mission, it would take several minutes for them to get here. The majority were soldiers or Rodney's scientists. Medical had twelve staff, not counting her and Carson; there were two dedicated trauma surgeons, Captain Amanda Cole of the Air Force, who happened to be the only military doctor with them, a pathologist/medical examiner, which Jennifer hoped they would never need, Elaine Biro, a psychologist, Kate Heightmeyer, three nurses, and five physicians who also did research. It was not nearly enough if something catastrophic happened, but they were all hoping to explore a year or two and then contact Earth. Most of the military had first aid and first responder training so they could help if they needed to. Jennifer was planning on asking Carson and Elizabeth at some point to ask everyone to get the training.

Rodney was staring around the room seeming like he could not take it all in. His desire to explore the entire city immediately was so great it left him momentarily stunned. _So much to do and see. I'll spend the rest of my life here._

"Rodney," Jennifer reached out to touch his arm. "Can you believe we're here?"

"No. This is amazing. I never dreamed it would be intact," he glanced down at the woman next to him and smiled. "No regrets, I hope."

"No regrets. Thank you, again. A whole Ancient city to explore, I can't wait," Jennifer smiled back with a giggle. She noticed Sheppard heading for the stairs that led up to a room overlooking them. "That looks like it could be the control room. You'd better check it out, Rodney."

"Definitely. You…" Rodney really wanted to share everything with Jennifer. _That's silly, you can't drag her around the city with you. She has her own job._ The physicist nodded and dropped their bags on the side of the walkway. He grabbed his laptop carrier and went off after John. Jennifer pulled their stuff off to the side and continued to look around noticing more lights coming on as if someone was welcoming them.

The voice of Colonel Sumner sounded loudly through the room, "Everyone else find an open space and park it until instructed otherwise."

"Charming fellow, isn't he," Doctor Gaul said behind Jennifer.

She turned to face the scientist who was surrounded by lots of folks with the blue of Science and Research on their jackets. "He and his men are here to protect us. It's their only job. If we follow their orders we'll have a very good chance of staying alive."

Looking around, she took in everything causing her head to spin; the dead plants, the Ancient writing on the steps leading upstairs, the windows that looked like they had stained glass in them and all the personnel and equipment filling the Gateroom. The medical researcher noticed a familiar face among the soldiers standing guard nearby, Sergeant Dwayne Richards. She nodded and smiled to him. He moved his head slightly, which Jennifer took as a sign that he saw her. The Marine was on duty, so she expected nothing more.

The last soldier came through the gate and they heard Elizabeth radio through to have them shut it down. A slight flash of panic passed through her and many others from what she could see in their eyes. _This was it. Absolutely no turning back._ Catching Carson's eye, they both smiled at each other and stepped closer.

"Thank you for making me come with you, Carson," Jennifer said to her boss. "I'm glad I didn't let you and Rodney go without me."

"Ah, love, I could never have left you. I probably would have backed out myself without you here," her mentor said without any sarcasm. "Let's hope we don't regret our decisions."

People were fidgeting around and looking nervous, which meant they needed something to occupy them.

"I'm going to move some of these supplies around. Get the medical stuff together, so we will be able to move it to the future infirmary."

Taking a queue from her, Doctor Radek Zelenka said something similar to the scientists nearby. The different departments started looking at cases and equipment skids to identify where things should go.

After about a half hour, Doctor Weir come to the balcony of the upper room, which Jennifer and most of the Ancient Tech folks thought was the control room to say, "Colonel Sumner and I agree that the more people we have exploring the City the better. He asks that you all take a military escort with you and do not leave in groups of less than three, making sure someone has a radio to call back to the control room."

"Knew it was the control room," Jennifer was grinning broadly.

"Are you sure you should not be in our department?" Radek said in a thick accent.

"Rodney already asked me about that and I told him no, so I'll tell you the same," she said smiling at the little man who stood a couple inches taller than her.

"He is a brilliant man. We are all lucky to get to work with him, but he is not _easy_ to work with," the Czech said as they looked around for others to set off with.

"I'm sure you'll do fine. Just don't be intimidated by him. I'll tell you the story of our first encounter. You can remember it whenever he gets overbearing and laugh at him." Jennifer saw Carson heading down the corridor alone. "Gotta save my boss because he has the Ancient gene and almost killed General O'Neill once. Can't leave him alone in this place."

Walking quickly toward the doorway, Jennifer paused in front of Sergeant Richards. "Are you available for escort duty, Sarge?"

"Absolutely, Doctor Keller," Dwayne was impressed the young woman was listening to the Colonel's wishes. _Maybe the geniuses here are not all as dumb as usual._

"Carson," Jennifer called walking quickly after him with Richards at her side. "Wait!"

Beckett stopped as he waited for Jennifer and the Marine to catch up. "Sorry, love, couldn't wait to look around. I thought with my… abilities, I might find something useful."

"It's those abilities, we need to keep in check," she smiled as they caught up with him. "Sarge, lead the way."

Dwayne nodded to the pretty young doctor. _If she stays this agreeable to the military, I'll have a hell of a time keeping the young guys in line. Already got Stackhouse and Markham drooling over her and even Lieutenant Ford and Major Sheppard have an eye on her. That's the last thing we need._ "Sure, Doctor."

They did not walk far when a door opened on Carson's left startling them. Richards quickly moved in front of the physicians and shone the light on his P90 around the room. It was large with a dais in the middle and a console directly in front of that.

"Looks like it recognized you, Doc," the sergeant said looking to Beckett.

"I wonder what it does?" Carson moved toward the console.

"Carson, I'm not sure touching it is a good idea," Jennifer looked nervously at the Marine next to her.

Ignoring his friend, Carson stepped up to the podium and the entire room lit up. The soldier raised his gun and looked around. A woman appeared in the middle of the dais in front of them, but you could almost see through her. For a second, Beckett thought she was a ghost.

"Welcome home to the City of Atlantis," the woman on the dais began.

"Ah, Sarge, you better radio this in," Jennifer said stepping next to her boss.

* * *

In the control room, Rodney was totally absorbed. He had no idea how he was ever going to sleep in this place. There was so much to study. As his computers synched to the Ancient ones, he saw a new flood of translated data show up. He was fluent in Ancient, but this was slightly different than the language on Earth. It was going to take some time to translate.

Sumner called Elizabeth away a little while ago to look at something he found, so the physicist kept looking over data. Something caught his eye and he cried out, "Holy crap!" causing Peter and the other technicians to jump.

Rodney heard a voice on the radio call out, "Alpha five to control room." Since he was the most senior person there, he picked it up.

"Control room, go ahead."

"Doctor Beckett, Doctor Keller and I are in a room down the corridor to the right of the Gateroom. The room contains a hologram of an Ancient providing information about the city. I believe Colonel Sumner and Doctor Weir need to see this," came the calm and steady voice on the other end of the radio. Rodney's pulse quickened at first when he heard Jennifer's name, but the soldier obviously thought they were in no danger. _Where did that concern come from?_

"I'll get them," Rodney put the radio down and left the Gateroom. Grodin wondered why he did not just call, but assumed he wanted to deliver the news personally.

Rodney found the people he was looking for three flights of stairs down from the control room. "Colonel. Doctor Weir."

"We're under water!" Sheppard said glancing at him.

_I know that!_ McKay thought and walked over to join them. "Yes I was just, uh, coming to tell you. Fortunately there is some sort of a force field holding back the w...water." He stopped and stared at the sight out of the window. "Oh, that is impressive, isn't it?"

They all stared out of the window for a few moments and then Rodney remembered why he came down. "Um, Jennifer and Doctor Beckett have found something you should, uh, see."

McKay led the others to a room back on the Gateroom level. He went to stand next to Jennifer as they all looked at a glowing hologram of a woman in a white robe.

"... in the hope of spreading new life in a galaxy where there appeared to be none. Soon the new life grew, prospered. Here..." the hologram spoke.

"It's a hologram. The recording loops. This is our third time through," Carson said smiling from the console.

"What have we missed?" Colonel Sumner said to all and then glancing at Sergeant Richards. "Sergeant, good job tracking down the doctors."

"I didn't need to track them down, sir," Richards told the Colonel. "Doctor Keller asked me to escort them, sir."

Sumner looked genuinely surprised and glanced at the young woman standing next to Doctor McKay. _Finally, a smart civilian._

"Not much," Beckett addressed the Colonel's question to all of them.

"... exchange knowledge and friendship," the hologram continued as a three dimensional holographic map of the galaxy appeared over there heads. "In time, a thousand worlds bore the fruit of life in this form. Then one day our people stepped foot upon a dark world where a terrible enemy slept. Never before had we encountered beings with powers that rivaled our own. In our over-confidence, we were unprepared and outnumbered. The enemy fed upon defenseless human worlds like a great scourge until finally only Atlantis remained. This city's great shield was powerful enough to withstand their terrible weapons but here we were besieged for many years. In an effort to save the last of our kind, we submerged our great city into the ocean. The Atlantis Stargate was the one and only link back to Earth from this galaxy, and those who remained used it to return to that world that was once home. There, the last survivors of Atlantis lived out the remainder of their lives. This city was left to slumber, in the hope that our kind would one day return."

Beckett stepped off the podium and the hologram disappeared leaving everyone to his or her thoughts.

"So the story of Atlantis is true. A great city that sank in the ocean," the physicist said.

"We're under water?" Jennifer asked audibly gulping.

"Yes," Rodney replied.

"It just didn't happen on Earth," Beckett added.

"Well, the ancient Greeks must've heard it from one of the surviving Ancients," Rodney answered.

"Is there a problem?" Sheppard asked leaning toward Jennifer noticing that she suddenly looked pale and frightened.

"Probably not a good time to mention that I can't swim," Jennifer was suddenly afraid. Looking around the room, she was could imagine water crushing in on them. "Drowning is at the top of my list of ways I do _not_ want to die."

"There's a shield protecting the city," Rodney added trying to calm her nerves. Since Jennifer stood between him and Sheppard he heard and saw the exchange, which caused him to stiffen at the soldier's proximity to her and the concern in the his voice. "You are perfectly safe."

"I thought you said your Dad was in the Navy? How could you not know how to swim?" John looked at her with eyebrows raised.

"I said he was a Seabee, construction brigade," Jennifer answered trying to calm her fear. _If Rodney said they were safe, they would be okay._

"I'm sure I could find time to teach you when things settle down," John said quietly noticing the glare being shot at him by the head scientist. It was obvious this man had a crush on Jennifer. Something about his demeanor; arrogant, condescending, overbearing made Sheppard want to annoy him.

Peter Grodin rushed in, walked over to McKay and whispered something in his ear. Jennifer strained to hear what he said because the engineer looked concerned.

"I don't like the fact they got their asses kicked," Colonel Sumner said with some concern in his voice.

Carson got back on the podium causing the holographic woman to appear again. "Let's hear it again from the beginning."

"Stop! Turn it off!" McKay shouted causing Carson to jump off the podium. Jennifer, Sheppard and Elizabeth all started slightly at the sound of his voice. "Power levels throughout the city are dropping like a stone."

"What does that mean?" Sumner asked harshly.

"That if we don't stop everything we're doing right now, we are dead."

Rodney and Peter rushed out of the room. The others stared at each other in stunned silence. _This is not possible. We can't get here and die like this._

* * *

In the control room, McKay was feverishly working on a laptop hooked up to one of the Ancient consoles. Carson walked over to him with fear on his face. "Please tell me this is not my fault."

"No," McKay said in an annoyed voice.

"Carson, I don't think draining the power of the city was caused by watching a hologram," Jennifer added trying to calm her boss. Suddenly, the thought of the terrible danger they faced washed over the young woman. _Need to stay focused. Rodney and the others will come up with a plan. _Her heart was still racing and her stomach felt like giant bats were flying around in it, so she concentrated on her breathing. Sheppard came and sat next where she stood. Looking into the hazel eyes of the Air Force Major she found his calm to be contagious. _If something happens, I need to be ready to move, so stay focused._

"Thank goodness," Carson let out the breath he was holding and stepped out of the way, so Rodney could move around.

"From what we've been able to ascertain, the city is powered by three Zero Point Modules. Two are entirely depleted and the third is reaching maximum entropy. When it does, it'll die too and nothing can reverse that," the physicist started to explain to others.

"Just tell me the bottom line," said Sumner who had spent his lifetime dealing with pompous scientists and had no patience.

"The force field holding back the ocean has collapsed to its minimum sustainable levels. Look, you can see." He turned to a screen showing the star shape of Atlantis and indicated a couple of points on it." Here and here where the shield's already failed and the city's flooded. It could have happened years ago. This section is likely more protected because of the Stargate."

"What if it fails completely?" John asked. It was the question that hung in the room. He glanced at Jennifer next to him. She was obviously waging war internally over this and right now, it appeared she was staying calm. _I knew she was tougher than she looked. _

"It's a matter of when, not if," McKay said looking around. His eyes fixed onto Jennifer's for a second in a silent apology. A minor tug at the corners of her mouth was the only answer she gave.

"Colonel Sumner, you need to order your security team to stop searching the city immediately," Elizabeth's commanding voice said.

"All security teams fall back to the Gateroom."

"It's not going to be good enough," Rodney said.

"All right, Rodney, how much time do we have?" Elizabeth said.

"It's hard to say. Hours, maybe days if we minimize power expenditure," McKay replied looking at a couple computer screens.

"What about our naquadah generators? Won't they help?" Jennifer remembered him discussing an idea of using them as supplemental power back at the outpost.

"We're working on that, but even with the most advanced naquadah power generators that we brought, the equations are coming up far short," he replied once again impressed at how much information her brain retained.

"So we need to find more ZPMs," Elizabeth interjected.

"Now how do we do that if we can't search the city?" The military leader's voice was once again annoyed.

"If there were more here, we'd be able to detect them," Rodney pointed to the map behind him to emphasize his point.

"Can we use the Stargate?" Sumner asked

"There's nowhere near enough power to open a wormhole back to Earth," McKay said with a bit of venom in it. _Don't these people realize we are screwed!_

"Maybe somewhere in this galaxy," the major offered glancing at Jennifer.

"That's relatively easy." Rodney led them over to the console that acts as a DHD, where Peter was already working. "Fortunately some Ancient technology still uses good old-fashioned push buttons, so we've been able to access the Stargate control system and a library of known Gate addresses in the database."

"That's not all. Look at this," Peter pushed a button and a shimmering force shield appeared across the Stargate.

"Just like the iris on the Earth Gate," Sumner was impressed. _Some security at least._

Rodney started chanting quietly but pointedly. "Using power, using power, using power."

Grodin finally realized what he meant and shut the shield off.

"At least we don't have to deal with any uninvited guests," Weir said as she turned to Sumner. "Colonel, assemble a team. We need safe harbor, or better still another power source."

"Lieutenant Ford, gather security teams one and two. Everyone gear up," Sumner spoke into his radio.

"Major, I want you to go along as well," Weir said to Sheppard.

"Yes, ma'am," John smiled at Jennifer, which she returned.

Realizing what was going on, the young doctor jumped in, "Carson and I will organize the civilians to sort our material into what's absolutely necessary to survive and what can be left behind. When you get back with a safe harbor, we'll be ready to leave."

"Excellent idea, Doctor Keller," Elizabeth said nodding.

Jennifer caught Carson's eye and motioned toward the door of the control room. It appeared he took a moment to realize what she meant and moved to follow her. They could hear Elizabeth tell Rodney to dial the gate. Jennifer smiled at Rodney as they passed each other.

"I'm sorry, Jennifer. I didn't…" Carson said as they left the room.

"Carson, you know once I make a decision, I'm in for the duration. No regrets. We'll find another place to go to and take it from there. The soldiers have it under control."

On the Gateroom level, the gate began dialing causing the non-military folks to stare in stunned disbelief. Jennifer shouted slightly to be heard over the Marine teams that were organizing. There was a MALP rolling toward the gate. "All right, all the non-military personnel who don't have something to do can gather over here."

Sumner looked in Jennifer's direction at the sound of the petite woman's voice. "Doctor Weir would like us to sort our supplies into two groupings, the material absolutely necessary for survival, basic medical supplies, food, weapons and the like. We'll push unnecessary material down the corridors."

"What's going on, Doctor Keller," Kate Heightmeyer asked stepping out of the crowd.

"Doctor Weir will brief everyone when she has the time. Until then, we have work to do." Not wanting to panic folks, she dodged the psychologist's question. She never had much experience bossing people around before, but this had been her idea leaving her responsible for carrying it out.

Sumner glanced at his troops. "Sergeant Richards."

"Yes sir," Dwayne responded. He had taken up the same post he was in previously.

"I'd like you to work with the doctor to get our material organized."

"Yes, sir," Richards caught the stunned expression on Jennifer's face. "Doctor Keller, I'll organize the Marines to sort the weapons."

"Thank you, Sarge," she replied. Turning back to the fifty or so civilians, she said. "Carson will supervise the medical supplies and I'll work with…" pausing she caught Brendan Gaul's eyes, "Doctor Gaul and the other scientific staff. Operations staff can work with Sergeant Richards. Let's get to work."

The military teams were organized to depart through the gate. Weapons, ammunition and other equipment was handed out to them. The MALP was sent through. Jennifer knew Rodney and Peter were up in the control room watching the information from the MALP to give Elizabeth and Sumner enough information to decide if the mission was _go_ or _no go._

Peter came down to hand out remote dialing devices to the soldiers. Then she heard the Colonel tell everyone to move out. She nodded to the men she knew passing through the gate Ford, Stackhouse, Granger, Warrington and finally John Sheppard. Their eyes locked for a moment after he waved up to the control room. An unspoken wish of _good luck_ passed between them. John nodded to her and pulled his night vision goggles over his eyes disappearing into the wormhole.

Once the gate shut down silence filled the room. "All right everyone you know what to do, so let's get this gear sorted and stowed," Sergeant Richard's voice boomed around the room. Jennifer shared a grateful smile with the Marine and moved toward Brandon and the scientists.

**TBC**

* * *

**A/N: I'll follow through the rest of the episodes mostly from Jennifer's POV with some other folks thrown in. If she is not involved in the storyline, like on Athos, I will not be altering what already exists.**


	6. Rising

**MGM owns all characters except OCs. Some dialogue from Gateworld.**

**Thank you for the reviews. You are keeping me going. **

**As always thanks to my **_**editors**_** dwparsnip and scr1tno. **

* * *

For the rest of the _evening_, the remaining civilians and military personnel left on Atlantis sorted supplies, began putting away extra material that was not critical and tried to eat and rest. Jennifer and the rest of the medical staff were setting up the infirmary. The Marines had found a large suite with isolation rooms, beds and Ancient equipment, which the young doctor determined to be medical equipment. She learned some Ancient while working with Rodney's department in Antarctica and used it to determine the equipment was used to monitor and treat people. Only one of the medical staff beside Carson had the ability to use Ancient technology and she was not very good at it. They both relied on Jennifer to tell them what things might be. After several hours, she felt her stomach rumbling.

Wondering how Rodney was holding up, Jennifer headed to the coolers of food outside the Gateroom to find something for them to eat. A violent shudder hit the city causing Jennifer to lose her balance and fall into some crates. After regaining her footing, she glanced at the upper level and noticed Peter, Elizabeth and Rodney having a meeting in a glass-walled office. Looking back to the control room she saw two technicians working on the consoles, so she took six meals with her upstairs.

"Thought you could use something to eat," she said to the men in the control room. "I'll put it on these crates in case Ancient devices don't react well to food."

The men chuckled. One had a Canadian flag on his shoulder and the other American.

"I'm Jennifer Keller," she said extending her hand to the Canadian first.

"I know. I'm Chuck. Chuck Campbell," he replied shaking her hand and smiling.

"Really?" Jennifer raised her eyebrows.

"We know who all the geniuses are." The other man leaned over the upper console he was working on to shake her hand. "I'm Jimmy Tung."

"One of the geniuses. Why are you interested in the geniuses? Is there some type of pool or something?" _Pools were really big in Antarctica. The military and junior scientists bet on everything._

"Absolutely," Chuck said looking at the box lunches Jennifer brought up. "Who is the smartest person in Atlantis?"

"How are you going to determine the winner?" Jennifer could not help laughing and getting drawn in by the friendly technicians._ Considering we could all die horrible deaths, it's refreshing to laugh a little._

"IQ tests," Jimmy replied taking a box from Chuck. "Trying to use up the fresh food, first?"

"Yes, it'll go to waste really fast since I doubt we'll be able to plug in fridges and freezers where we'll be going. Only got the MREs and non-perishable food staged for immediate evacuation." Jennifer sat near Rodney's laptop to eat a ham and cheese sandwich with chips. Somehow being near his computer helped her nerves. The thought of death by drowning still stayed on her mind, terrifying her.

"I haven't done one of those stupid tests in ages," Jennifer said shaking her head.

"What was yours the last time you took one?" Chuck asked before diving into his roast beef sandwich.

"I don't think…" Jennifer started only to have Rodney, Peter and Elizabeth return.

"Jennifer," Rodney said looking relieved. He had been chained to the computers and consoles in the control room and was unable to keep track of where she was. A smile immediately came to his face.

"I thought you all might like some food. I guess it's a late night snack if we keep to SGC time." Jennifer smiled looking at Peter and Elizabeth.

"Doctor Weir, we have everything assembled near the gate. Sergeant Richards has everybody assigned to specific items, so we should be able to move out in an orderly fashion if you make the call," Jennifer said to the expedition leader.

"I can't thank you enough, Doctor Keller, for taking the initiative with this. Let's hope we don't have to go." She shot a look at Rodney who had settled next to Jennifer to dig into his roast beef sandwich.

He did not comment because hunger outweighed his sense of annoyance at her disbelief in his assessment. _The time is going to come, very soon, when the shield would fail entirely. _No matter what his team was doing with supplemental power, it was not going to be enough.

"Where did everyone go? I haven't seen many people in the Gateroom lately," Peter said taking a meal box and sitting near Chuck and Jimmy. Elizabeth did not take any food.

"Doctor Weir, you have to eat something. I could medically order you to. I think," Jennifer said. Elizabeth offered a weak smile and took a box. "For your information, Peter, folks are trying to eat or get some rest. They are grouped into a few rooms on this level to be ready to go in a moment's notice. Sergeant Richards didn't let people wander too far." The physician looked at Elizabeth who stiffened at her words. _I understand how you feel. I can't believe we just found this place and need to leave it._

Silence permeated the room for a few moments. Everyone was lost in their thoughts while eating their sandwiches. Finally, Chuck spoke up, "So Doctor Keller, are you going to tell us your IQ or do we have to guess?"

"If I tell you, you'll have an inside track on the pool," Jennifer said.

"Pool? What pool?" Peter asked.

"Who is the smartest of the geniuses? I don't know how they'll get good results unless they administer the same IQ test to each of us. We have all taken different tests in different countries, so who knows if the numbers can even be compared."

"Dwo-Ow-five," Rodney mumbled with a mouthful of sandwich.

"In English please, not Canadian with a full mouth," Jennifer giggled causing Rodney to turn red. "And I should have known you would offer yours up right away."

"Two-oh-five."

"Two-hundred-and-five?" Peter said, his jaw dropping. Rodney nodded.

"The highest IQ on record is two-hundred-ten…" Chuck started to be cut off by Rodney.

"The Korean guy. Was a physicist but became a civil engineer. I know all about him. Not sure the result is real," McKay said with a dismissive voice. "The high IQs that you find on the Internet are usually bogus."

Jennifer stared at him, as did everyone else in the room. They all talked about how smart Rodney was, but an IQ of two-hundred-and-five would make him one of the smartest people alive. Silence once again permeated the room as the super genius continued to eat, basking in their shocked expressions.

"I know where I'm putting my money, guys." Jennifer finally said shooting Rodney a big smile.

When everyone had finished eating, Jennifer got up and headed to the doorway. "I want to get in as much work as I can done on the gene therapy before I have to leave it behind."

"What do you mean leave it behind?" Rodney yelled. "You have to finish it! There is nothing more important to the mission."

She stopped and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "More important than power generation? Food? Weapons? I don't think so." _When is he going to accept that he might never be able to use Ancient technology? It's moved from cute to annoying._

"The ability to use Ancient technology is going to increase our chance of getting home. The more people who can use it, the better." Rodney had jumped to his feet and walked over to her.

"Rodney, I know how important this is to _you_, but I can't sacrifice the other material for my research," the physician said.

"Doctor Keller," Elizabeth walked over to them. "I have to say that I agree with Rodney on this one. If there is a way to take your research you should plan on doing so."

Jennifer was stunned. Of course she wanted to take her research and believed it was the most important of all, but she was also realistic. To have Elizabeth see its value gave the young woman immense pride. Nodding to Doctor Weir and glancing at Rodney who relaxed a bit, Jennifer headed through the door.

"Jennifer." The physicist caught up with her right outside the doorway.

"Yes, Rodney." She turned looking up at him.

"Jennifer." Rodney stepped closer and lowered his voice glancing at the control room and the Marine who was waiting for Jennifer nearby. _Looks like that Sergeant gave her and escort. A smart soldier, who can believe it. _The thought of Jennifer drowning flashed into his head and he pushed it aside. _Elizabeth better listen to me when its time to go or I'm going to have people clear out myself._ "When I call you to evacuate, you need to drop everything you are doing and come here immediately. Okay?"

"Okay." Jennifer saw intensity in his eyes that she had not seen before. It almost looked like fear. She decided not to debate him about it.

"Good. Just come here and we'll… we'll get out of here." Rodney looked into her brown eyes, which were looking at him with total trust. He could not remember a woman looking at him like that before and found himself feeling another unfamiliar emotion.

Clearing his throat so everyone could hear he said, "Thanks again for lunch."

"Not a problem. I'll see all of you later. And Doctor Weir, you need to eat," Jennifer said with a smile to Elizabeth as she left.

* * *

A few hours later Jennifer was trying to get a little rest. She was sitting in the hologram room as they named it. Exhausted to the point of barely being able to stand, she finally slid down against the wall. Amanda and Marie were with her from medical and then a bunch of Rodney's scientist, Brandon Gaul, Ben Abrams and Scott Hays were close by.

"Jennifer!" Rodney's voice shouted in her ear.

"Ow! You don't need to yell," she said.

"Sorry, but shield failure is imminent. We need to leave, now!" Rodney said loudly.

"On my way. Everyone, I just got a call from Rodney. He said the shield is failing and we need to go."

"But we didn't hear anything from Elizabeth, yet?" Doctor Abrams said.

"He's in the control room and is more familiar with the shields than anyone right now. I'm trusting his judgment," Jennifer said turning to leave. The others in the room got up and followed her out. In the corridor she caught Sergeant Richards's eye and nodded toward the Gateroom.

"All right people, let's move out," the sergeant said his voice echoing down the corridor.

As they got closer to the Gateroom, Doctor Weir's voice came over all radios, "Attention all personnel. This is Weir. Stand by for immediate evacuation."

A violent shudder passed through the city. It was stronger than anything they felt so far. Jennifer fell into Radek, who had just run up a side corridor. He was white-faced and his hair was even messier than usual. They held each other up and then hurried up the corridor.

"What…" Jennifer started to ask, but the sight of the Stargate activating stopped her. Looking up at the control room, she saw Rodney, Elizabeth and Peter. Her eyes connected with his and she started to move toward the stairs. _What are you doing? You need to get your stuff and be ready to move._ She could not stop heading toward Rodney. Carson was nowhere to be seen, so she wanted to be with the other man she cared about.

Rodney could finally breathe when he saw Jennifer enter the Gateroom with several of his scientists, her medical colleagues and a few Marines. She glanced up at him and started heading toward the stairs. _Thank God she came right away!_

Just then Major Sheppard came through the Gate, followed by Marines and people dressed in clothing that appeared on Earth at Renaissance Fairs. _What the hell?_ _Who are they?_ The physicist could not imagine why the soldier brought people back with him and was furious he interrupted the dial out.

"Step in folks, move away from the puddle," John said motioning for the scared people to move further into the Gateroom.

Jennifer stopped to watch John and the others come through the gate. Elizabeth was running down the steps toward them. The shaking was intensifying and Jennifer was finding it hard to stay on her feet. She was still moving toward the stairs to get to Rodney as if on autopilot. A part of her brain screamed she needed to be ready to go out the gate, but the part that was terrified of dying wanted to be near him.

"Major Sheppard? Major Sheppard, who are all these people?" Elizabeth said to John. The City was shaking violently causing things to begin to move around in the Gateroom.

"Survivors from the settlement. We were attacked. Sumner and some of our men were taken. What's going on here?" John said looking at Elizabeth and then at Jennifer who stopped climbing the steps to hear what he had to say. Her face was shocked by his news.

"We are in no condition to help anyone right now," Weir yelled at him.

"What the hell's going on here?" Sheppard said.

"We are about to abandon the city," Weir said.

"Going back there is a really bad idea."

"Major Sheppard, the shield is about to fail and the ocean is about to come crashing in on us. Do you have a better place for us to go?" Elizabeth shouted again.

Jennifer felt pure fear for the first time. Hearing the expedition leader say _the ocean is about to come crashing in_ got her legs moving up again.

"Jinto, do you have any other addresses we could gate to?" John said to a young boy in the crowd.

"Yes. Many," a boy of about ten said. The major grabbed his arm and hurried him towards the stairs leading to the control room.

"He's just a boy," Elizabeth said incredulously

"I am Jinto."

"She's pleased to meet you," John said making eye contact with Jennifer on the stairwell.

"The shield is collapsing!" Rodney shouted from the control room.

_Oh God, this is it. I'm going to drown._ Tears welled up in her eyes and she tried to keep climbing to get to Rodney, but the shaking was making it difficult. There was a flash of light and the city shook hard, knocking everyone off his or her feet. Jennifer felt herself falling backward with no way to prevent it. An arm grabbed her around the waist, pulling her down onto the stairs. Jennifer looked at John and wrapped her arms around him pressing her head against his shoulder. His arm tightened around her.

"We're moving!" he yelled as the shaking got worse and crates and boxes crashed to the floor of the Gateroom.

Jennifer continued to cling to John for a few more seconds and seemed to realize the same time as everyone else that they stopped moving. The room brightened as light came through the glass windows. The major shifted to help Jennifer and Jinto who had been at his other side to their feet. He kept his arm around her shoulders as they continued climbing the stairs. Her breathing was returning to normal but her heart was still racing so she kept an arm around John until she reached the top to steady herself.

"Jennifer," Rodney called to her. So many different emotions ran through him in the last few minutes that he had trouble processing them. When it appeared Jennifer was going to fall down the stairs, he was terrified for her. For a second, he imagined her lying at the bottom of the stairs with a broken neck or worse. Luckily, Sheppard moved quickly and grabbed her holding on for some time.

_Okay, Sheppard, you can let her go now! _Making his way toward them ready to physically pull them apart, his anger dissipated when he saw her beautiful smile. She walked over to him, wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him. _Jennifer's hugging me? Why is she hugging me?_ Now that his fantasy of her touching him was happening, he was powerless to do anything. By the time his arms began to move from hanging limply at his side, Jennifer moved back toward the window with Sheppard, Ford, Weir and the boy.

"We're on the surface," Ford said in disbelief.

Jennifer groaned and looked up at Rodney. He still appeared confused over the turn of events. Her happiness at not dying made her rather giddy. "We are the stupidest bunch of geniuses ever assembled."

"Huh," Rodney responded.

"The City of Atlantis was _submerged_ into the sea by the Ancients," Jennifer said pausing, "so that means…"

"It could rise again!" Rodney hit himself in the forehead with an open palm. _What an idiot! _"We should have been looking for a way to raise the city for the last day, not fighting a losing battle with naquadah generators. We might have kept some power in the ZedPM."

Jennifer felt bad pointing out to Rodney how stupid they all were, but they forgot the hologram's story. _The city was submerged into the ocean; it did not sink. It must have a mechanism for rising._

"I was hoping for another day. Looks like we just got a whole lot more than that. Let's not waste it," Elizabeth said.

* * *

Once they began moving supplies out of the Gateroom, Jennifer got pulled back into setting up the infirmary. Sergeant Granger was killed along with another Marine during the attack on the settlement. _I thought we were the ones in danger._ The fact they survived unscathed and two soldiers were dead made her even more determined to ensure all the soldiers got the respect they deserved from her fellow scientists.

She was working alongside Carson getting his research lab set up with microscopes and other analytical equipment when John and Aiden came in with something wrapped in a piece of material that looked like canvas.

"Aiden, I'm glad you're okay." Jennifer said to the young Marine. "John, I'm really sorry about Granger and Vitolli."

"We've got a gift for you two," John said nodding to her.

"You shouldn't have. My birthday's not for another month," Jennifer said.

"If you want this for your birthday, you are one sick woman." John smiled at her.

"What do you have there, Major?" Carson asked.

John laid the material on the table in front of the two doctors. "It's the arm of one of the aliens that attacked us. It was crawling in the wreckage of one of their ships that we shot down."

"Crawling? After it was severed?" Carson asked.

"Yes," John replied.

"Probably just some residual nerve signals. It looks… hideous, but fascinating none the less," Jennifer said. A quick surge of bile from her stomach was suppressed by her desire to discover new things. "What did it come from?"

"Something called a Wraith," John said. "The Athosians we brought back can tell you what they know about them. I need to get to a briefing with Doctor Weir. Do you think you can find out about it? Specifically how to kill it."

"We'll get on it right away, Major," Carson said. He had the look of a kid at Christmas.

"I'd love to help you dissect it, but I really need to work on the gene therapy." Jennifer was truly saddened by the lack of her ability to do two things at once. _Gene therapy is priority number one. _Carson put on gloves to pick the arm up and turned it over in his hands staring intently at it.

"I think I'll leave you two to get better acquainted," Jennifer said. She walked to the icemaker and pulled out a tray to fill up.

"Jennifer, I'm sorry. What did you say, love?" Carson seemed to just realize Jennifer was still in the lab with him.

"I said, here is some ice for your sample and I'll be in my new lab if you need me." Jennifer put the tray of ice on the table. _My lab, that sounds wonderful._

"Why don't you give me a hand?" Beckett said.

"My excuse for silliness is sleep deprivation. Not sure what yours is," the younger doctor said chuckling and shaking her head. She left her boss to start his analysis.

Hours later using microscopes and magnifying devices, Doctor Beckett was still examining the severed arm when Elizabeth entered the lab for an update.

"Doctor Beckett, what was it you wanted me to see?" Elizabeth asked as Carson picked up the arm to show her.

"These cells have none of the normal human inhibiting proteins whatsoever. That gives them an incredible ability to regenerate."

Jennifer entered at this point with a computer tablet. Carson had asked her to run a test with one of the geologists, Doctor Deb Jones, and she had the results in time to share with Doctor Weir.

"What about the movement Major Sheppard saw?" Elizabeth asked.

"As far as independent behavior, I'd say that anything he saw was caused by a residual command reaching the severed nerve endings," Carson smiled at Jennifer because he borrowed her explanation.

"Alright. Anything else?" Elizabeth asked.

"Aye, I had Jennifer run an experiment and it looks like she has the results." Carson turned to face Jennifer, as did Elizabeth.

"Well, Carson, you were right when you thought that the being this arm belonged to was very old. According to a quick and dirty carbon-dating that I did with Deb in geology, it is at least ten-thousand years old."

"What?" Elizabeth had a shocked look on her face.

Carson and the women turned to stare at the arm he returned to the ice. He broke the silence. "As long as these cells are properly nourished, I don't see a life form like this ever dying of natural ageing the way we do, and they'd be bloody hard to kill."

"I don't like the sound of that," Weir replied.

"I don't blame you." The teacher and protégé looked at each other swallowing at the same time.

* * *

Jennifer buried herself in her research after the discussion with Elizabeth. John, Aiden, Tommy and several other Marines she knew went on the rescue mission. If the bullets could not kill these things, she did not want to think about what would happen to her friends. For someone who only had one close friend in her life to this point, she suddenly found herself friends with a lot of people. It was nice to finally feel like people accepted her as something other than a really young, really smart geek. Having spent so much time in academia where the competitive nature was extremely strong, it was amazing to not feel like everyone was out to get you. _Well, except for some of McKay's bunch, Kavanaugh comes to mind. _A smile crossed her face followed by a yawn. She suddenly realized she had not really slept since she left her house back in Chippewa Falls. A quick, power nap in the hologram room was it for over forty-eight hours. Just thinking about the numbers caused her head to slump.

Glancing around the area set aside for research, Jennifer saw a small office. Jumping off her stool, she headed into the infirmary section and grabbed a folding cot, blanket and small pillow. Setting them up in the office, she collapsed onto it and passed out immediately.

"Jennifer? Jennifer?" A sound permeated her sleep but her tired body and mind brushed it aside. A hand roughly shook her shoulder. "Jennifer, are you okay? Hey, Carson, get down to Jennifer's lab! I think she's sick."

Rodney finally had some time to leave the control room to get some food for himself and Jennifer. After trying her on the radio and getting no response, he found out where the medical area was being set up from one of the Marines and headed down. During the month they were together in Antarctica, there were bets on which one of them could get more absorbed in their work and what it would take to distract them; earthquake, explosion, and death were the heavy favorites. Fortunately, one of them usually remembered to eat or sleep and would remind the other one. Jennifer remembered yesterday and now it was Rodney's turn to return the favor. When he entered the lab, he saw her laptop open and her lab coat thrown over the chair. Putting the food down on her desk, he called her name and looked in a few adjoining labs. A sense of concern suddenly washed over him until he noticed a small office with no lights on. Opening the door, he saw her lying on a cot in the middle of the room.

"Jennifer!"

The voice and the shaking would not stop. _Oh please stop with the yelling._ Wanting to stop the noise and go back to sleep, Jennifer said, "I'm awake! I'm awake. Now go away!"

She swatted at the hand and ended up grabbing an arm. The sudden feel of someone's bare skin in her hand caused her to open her eyes. The sleepy woman saw the face that often showed up in her dreams looking at her with concern in his blue eyes.

"Rodney? What are you doing here?" She sat up quickly releasing his forearm.

"I… Uh… figured you'd want some breakfast." He stood quickly to turn on the lights.

"Breakfast? What time is it?" Jennifer stretched pulling her t-shirt tight across her chest. She heard Rodney make a strange sound and glanced at him only to find him heading out the door.

"There… Uh… I food… Ah… I got some food… out here." Rodney's heart was beating so fast he thought it would explode. The image of Jennifer with her golden hair all messed up and a sleepy expression on her face would stay with him forever. When she touched his arm, it felt like a jolt of electricity from a live wire and almost made him fall over. The final sight of her t-shirt stretched tight over her breasts was more than he could take. It had been a long time since he lusted after a woman and his body was lusting for Jennifer right now. _Stop it! She is a friend and colleague. You are supposed to keep her away from horny men, not turn into one yourself._

"Rodney, what the hell is going on?" Carson came rushing in the lab as Jennifer emerged from the office pulling her hair into a ponytail.

"It took you long enough to get here! She could be dead by now," Rodney growled at Carson. "Nice to see you are useless as most physicians are!"

"Hey! I resent that comment since I'm a physician, too," Jennifer said trying to sound angry. Both Jennifer and Carson were immune to the hypochondriac's displeasure with all things medical, but they did not let him know that.

"Not you… I mean… you're a real scientist," Rodney was getting red faced and had a terrified expression on his face.

_That is the cutest look; next to his sweet expression, which does not happen often._ Jennifer walked over to her desk, which Rodney was using as a table for the food.

"Dealing with all these stairs takes time," Carson said looking into the boxes to see what was for breakfast.

"Hey, keep your grubby hands off. They belong to Jennifer and me. Go get your own food." Rodney said.

"You better hope you never get injured and have to deal with me in the infirmary," Beckett said glaring at McKay.

"Enough, you two. I was not brought here to be a nanny to whiny men!" Jennifer sat down and opened the food container. "Have we heard from John and the others?"

To hear Jennifer mention the handsome pilot by first name, brought the familiar wave of anger and annoyance that was a common feeling to the physicist lately to the surface. "No, nothing in about six hours."

"Well, they had to try to find them. If they were captured then interrogated by these Wraiths, they could find out about us." Jennifer took a bite of blueberry muffin and glanced at her friends.

"Finding us on the surface without a shield would be very, very bad." Rodney also began eating his food.

Carson sighed. "Since Jennifer appears to be fine and you will not share, I'll go get my own food."

"Carson, you can have some of mine," Jennifer offered.

"I'm only bugging the grouch, love. I already ate."

"Well, thanks a lot for thinking of me slaving away down here while you were stuffing you face." Jennifer looked at him trying to appear angry.

As always was the case, her boss knew better. "You were asleep!"

"But you didn't know that," Jennifer smiled at him.

Throwing his hands up, he walked out muttering, "McKay is such a bad influence on you!"

The physician and the physicist continued their meal discussing what Rodney and his team were discovering about the city. Jennifer was always caught up in his excitement when he was talking about something he loved. _I could listen to him all day. What am I thinking, I have my own work to do. _

"I think you and I both need to get back to work. Hopefully, you got some rest in the last forty-eight hours. If not, doctor's orders are that you need to sleep at least six hours." Jennifer tried to use her strict doctor voice, which seemed to work on him.

"I don't think I'll ever sleep in this place. There is so much to see and discover," Rodney said as he got up grabbing their containers. "I'll dispose of this stuff on the way to the control room. I have to agree with Carson about the stairs though. The Ancients must have been really fit."

"I'm sure we'll find the elevator in time. Please let me know _when_ they get back." Their eyes connected until Rodney broke away.

Jennifer was taking her turn in the infirmary later that afternoon when two Athosians came in followed by Sergeant Mace.

"Doctor Keller, this woman is complaining of head pains," the young Marine said referring to a dark haired Athosian woman who was accompanied by a tall and broad shouldered man.

"Please come in here. My name is Jennifer Keller." She ushered them to a bed and helped the man assist the woman up.

"I am Kanaan and this is my sister, Adira."

"It's nice to meet you Kanaan and Adira. Please tell me what is wrong?"

Jennifer determined Adira had a mild concussion from being knocked to the ground during the evacuation. The doctor was just about to ask Kanaan if he had any injuries when Rodney yelled in her radio. "They're back!"

"Rodney, I told you not to yell in my ear! I'm on my way." Jennifer turned to the Athosian. "Our soldiers are back."

"I will come with you," Kanaan said turning to follow her out of the infirmary.

"Marie, tell the others they're back!" Jennifer and the tall Athosian headed for the stairs to the Gateroom.

* * *

Several hours later, Doctor Weir decided to have a celebration to welcome the Athosians. It gave everyone an opportunity to relax before the real work of exploration began. Gate teams were going to be formed to find allies, secure supplies and locate additional ZPMs. If they ever wanted to return home they needed extra power. But for a few hours, Elizabeth thought it should all be put on hold.

Jennifer found herself in her lab when the time for the party came. She wanted to meet the Athosians and talk to her friends, but the thought of being there without the one person she most enjoyed spending time with saddened her. _Rodney does not go to parties, remember what happened in Antarctica. _The young woman sighed. _Why do I always do this to myself? Will I ever like an accessible guy? John is funny and cute and just not Rodney. _Shaking her head, she turned to the latest data from her experiments.

"There you are. Did you forget the time?"

Jennifer jumped on her stool almost falling over as the voice of Rodney McKay sounded through her lab. _What is he talking about?_ "The time?"

"Yeah, remember Elizabeth's big idea? The welcoming party. Come on let's go," Rodney said waving toward the door.

_Is he asking me to go with him? Of course not, stupid!_ Jennifer looked at him like he was possessed.

"All the good food will be gone," Rodney said. "Hurry up."

The view from the balcony with the moonlight bathing the city was now one of Jennifer's favorites. There was not enough power to light the whole city but there were lights in a lot of the big towers.

"We will never get to explore this tower in a year, let alone the rest of the city," Jennifer said taking a drink of champagne with Rodney and Carson.

"Not to mention off world exploration," Rodney said.

"Off world?" Carson said as he took a gulp of the champagne.

"Yes, Elizabeth said they were going to form off world teams. Sheppard and a few of the other Marines. Asked if I was interested." He could not keep the smug look off his face.

"You on an Stargate team? That I would pay money to see," Carson said laughing.

Jennifer saw the look of pride on the physicist's face be replaced with doubt. A surge of anger at her mentor washed over her. "He is the smartest person on the expedition. It makes sense he'd be asked to be on a team, Carson."

Carson was surprised by Jennifer's anger. He and Rodney bickered constantly. Jennifer was usually the one to separate them and seldom took sides. This time, she obviously took Rodney's side in the matter. _This is not good. _Terrible thoughts of his two best friends in a relationship caused his stomach to twist.

"Well, I wouldn't want to be on one. Did you read any of the mission logs? They ran into all kinds of problems. Not to mention Rodney, you can't even shoot a gun. Don't know anything about fighting or military tactics either." Carson said.

"Neither did Doctor Jackson, but he learned. I think Rodney is a great choice." Jennifer felt a blush spread over her face so she quickly turned to the table to get a piece of fruit leaving a stunned astrophysicist holding his kebob.

Turning away from them for a moment, Carson noticed Teyla, the leader of the Athosians, and John. The beautiful woman said something about friendship to the Major, but he did not notice.

"How come I never make friends like that?" Carson said with a dreamy look in his eye.

"You need to get out more," Rodney said eating.

"We're in another galaxy -- how much more out can you get!" Carson replied.

"You are pathetic," Jennifer said rolling her eyes. Looking up at Rodney who seemed to really be enjoying himself, she asked, "Since when do you come to parties?"

"New galaxy and all. Thought I'd turn over a new leaf." Rodney looked serious for a moment and then finally smiled that rare _real_ smile that made her knees weak.

Jennifer finally recovered to return the smile and laughed. _Maybe there is hope for me after all._

**_TBC_**

**

* * *

**

**A/N Hide and Seek is one of my favorite Rodney episodes. It will take me a little while to get that one up. Thanks for the reviews. **_  
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	7. Hide and Seek

**MGM owns all characters. Some dialogue taken from GateWorld.**

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews. As always thanks to dwparsnip and scr1tno for keeping me on track.**

* * *

Jennifer had not slept for more than four hours at a time since she left Earth. Before the rescue team's return, she could not sleep out of fear for their safety. For the last three days, she could not sleep because of Rodney McKay. The young woman either dreamed about their _first date_ or she worked on the gene therapy he asked about daily. Jennifer knew it had not really been a date when they went to the party, but Rodney did _seek_ her out and _ask_ her to go. He stayed with her the entire evening getting her refills and taking the last of the peanut butter cookies for her. A smile crossed her face whenever she remembered the evening. _I can pretend it was a date._

The gene therapy had consumed all her waking hours. She got out of the rotation for infirmary coverage to work on it. _I will have to make up for that or I'll have no friends._ Feeling a wave of pure exhaustion wash over her, she shook her head to keep awake and stared at the syringe in front of her. It contained the results of her work since joining the Stargate program, the ATA gene therapy. According to her rodent studies, the therapy should be harmless to humans but gene therapy was not without some risks. Back on Earth she would have to conduct safety experiments in humans. In the Pegasus galaxy, there was urgency to getting it into people as soon as possible. Her concern for others' safety stopped her from just distributing it to anyone who wanted it. _I have to test it on someone first._

"Doctor Keller," Marie Cho, the head nurse, called out causing her to jump.

"Marie, what are you doing here so early?" Jennifer smiled at the nurse.

"Is everything okay, Doctor?" Marie asked looking at the syringe on the bench.

"Oh, I need to give myself my monthly injection and I really hate shots." Jennifer was going to lose her nerve the longer this took. _I have to test the therapy and I might as well do it on myself. _

"Do you want me to do it, Doctor Keller?"

"Would you mind? I know I'm a doctor and we all had to give ourselves shots in medical school, but I avoided it as much as possible." Being deceptive was not in Jennifer's nature and she found herself fidgeting like Rodney. The thought of the physicist's excitement at the gene therapy being finished caused her to smile. _I hope this works._

"Understandable. My fellow nursing majors had the same problems. No one likes to give shots to themselves." Marie took the syringe, prepped Jennifer's arm and injected it just as the voice of Carson Beckett could be heard in the main lab.

"Thank you, Marie." _Thank God. Carson would have tried to stop me._ Jennifer grabbed her jacket to put on as Marie left. She was going to have to run blood tests, but planned on resting first. _At least I haven't dropped dead right away._

"Good morning, Doctor Beckett," Marie said as she approached Carson. He noticed she left Jennifer's lab.

"Good morning, love. Hopefully, it will be another quiet day," Carson said.

"I hope so, it's just me and Doctor Schoffield on duty and Doctor Keller holed up in her lab. You know I don't even think she picked out quarters yet," she said.

"What? I guess I better get her out of here for the day," the CMO said. Concern for his friend suddenly washed over him as the face of Robert Keller filled his mind reminding him to watch out for his little _Jenny_. _I've been so caught up with this Wraith stuff, I forgot about her. Damn. _

"I'm sure she'll be tired since I just gave her the monthly injection. I know I'm usually tired afterward." Marie headed off to the nurse's station to relieve the night-shift nurse.

Carson suddenly felt a cold chill go through him. Due to an injury she received as a child she was incapable of getting pregnant, so she did not need the monthly injections. He saw it in her medical file. _What did she do? _

Carson ran into the lab. "Jennifer?"

"Hi, Carson. I'm just finishing up and heading off to get some rest," she spoke rapidly and did not look at him.

"Bloody hell, love, what did you do?" He said angrily. The instant he entered the lab and saw her disposing of the syringe he already knew.

"I didn't want to just inject it in anyone until I know it's safe," Jennifer said not looking Carson in the eye. "I know we can't run formal clinical trials out here, but we shouldn't just start distributing to the general population."

"Jennifer, you are too important to be the first person! If something goes wrong…" Carson looked closely at Jennifer and finally noticed how very tired she looked. She had circles under her eyes and they were not as bright as usual. _I should have watched her more closely._

"It's my therapy. It might as well be me. I can't let _anyone_ get hurt if I can prevent it," the young doctor said.

"Dammit. You shouldn't have… Jennifer." Carson was beside himself. He quickly walked to his friend putting his hands on her shoulders. _Get a grip. She did it, now you need to make sure she's safe. _"How do you feel?"

"I'm fine."

"We are running some tests before you rest though," he said with finality.

Looking into Carson's blue eyes, she saw a determination usually seen on the face of Rodney McKay. He even had his chin jutting out.

"Fine. Let's go," she said with an equally determined look on her face. As she exited the lab, she paused next to an un-activated scanner. Looking at Carson, she reached out to touch the panel. Nothing happened.

"It might take time to take effect. You know that." Carson noticed a look of disappointment on her face.

"I know from animal experiments that it does rewrite the gene. It doesn't work in everyone, so I guess I'm in the majority."

"It still might take time. Let's do those tests." The older doctor put his arm around his young friend and they left the lab.

* * *

"Major Sheppard, Doctor Keller cannot be on your gate team," Elizabeth Weir said once again. She and the major had been arguing for quite some time about the scientist he wanted on his team.

"Why not?" John was annoyed. Elizabeth was sticking her nose into his team. "You told me as the military commander I would get to pick my team. You said I should get a scientist. I choose Jennifer Keller."

"She is not the type of scientist I meant. She is a physician…"

"Which is an added bonus. You never specified the discipline I needed to pick from," Sheppard barked at his new boss.

"Physicians are never on gate teams."

"Maybe not in the Milky Way, but we are not there anymore."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "You need someone who can read Ancient."

"She can."

"Really?"

"Yes, Sergeant Richards said she was reading Ancient when they were setting up the infirmary. I checked with her and she said she was learning. Because she's a genius, she picks up languages really easily."

"Major, she's just not…" Elizabeth was exasperated. _Why is he so adamant about her?_

"I know McKay's a genius, but so is Jennifer. She gets along wonderfully with the military. He hasn't shown that ability to me. Sergeant Richards said he's never worked with a scientist who showed respect for the military and the chain of command like her. He's been with the SGC for a long time, so I trust his judgment." John was trying hard not to yell, but this was his second major decision that Elizabeth was against. _I did not signed up to be in charge._

"Major, I don't want to have this argument carry over into the staff meeting in ten minutes. Doctor Keller will be joining us for an update on her therapy. I don't want you approaching her until this is sorted out." She fixed him with a stare.

"Yes, ma'am." Major Sheppard was pissed. _Jennifer was perfect for his team._ She got along wonderfully with Ford and Teyla after a couple of days. _What was Weir's fascination with that pompous, arrogant physicist? _

"I get the feeling there is some _other_ reason you want Doctor Keller on your team." _If there is a relationship brewing, I need to kill it now. _Elizabeth raised an eyebrow._  
_

"Yes, I do. Jennifer is easy to get along with and McKay is not. He complains and is negative about everything. _We're all going to die. The sky is falling. We can't do that._ We need a positive team-player, not someone who does not play well with others," John said. He could not say anything more because McKay and Grodin entered the briefing room followed by Teyla with Aiden. Jennifer and Carson entered last with big grins on their faces.

Rodney looked up at Jennifer and when their eyes connected, he knew what was causing her grin. "You did it! It's finished!"

"Yes." Jennifer could not hide her excitement. If she were not in a room full of people, she would have run over and hugged him. She knew that he wanted the therapy in the hopes it would make him like Sheppard and Carson, but the young woman allowed herself the fantasy that he was just proud of her.

"Excellent job!" Rodney stood up and for a moment thought of pulling her in a hug. _What are you thinking?_ Instead of a hug, he stuck out his hand to shake hers. "Well done Jennifer."

Jennifer was on the verge of hyperventilating. _Rodney __**was**__ proud of her._ After their _date_, she was certain this was all a giant dream and she would wake up in Chippewa Falls. The feel of his hand on hers sent a shock through her body telling her this was real. Others were offering congratulations, including Doctor Weir, Peter and John, but the feel of Rodney's hand holding hers and his smiling face were all she could remember._ I never had a crush this bad before._

"Doctor Keller, I must say this is some accomplishment in just a month," Elizabeth was genuinely impressed. She avoided the smug look on John Sheppard's face as young woman sat between Sheppard and McKay, who were both beaming at her. _Sheppard cannot take her on his team, but I'm running out of arguments. She's just not what he needs. Only Ford would be an SGC veteran, I can't have that. _

"Well. This is great news. I'll expect that you and Carson will be putting together a distribution plan for the therapy." Elizabeth looked at her CMO.

"Aye. We discovered the treatment does not appear to harm humans and that it does encode the proper genetic information. It did not cause the Ancient gene to activate in the first test subject, but we know only about half the population will be affected," Carson explained.

"48.3 percent," Rodney added. He could not keep a grin off his face. He found himself constantly looking at Jennifer. She appeared radiant this morning. _It appeared she did sleep all day yesterday. _He went to the infirmary at breakfast, lunch and dinnertime to be told by Carson she was resting and was not to be disturbed by anyone. The level of concern he felt scared him. _What is it about this woman that causes me to worry about her so much?_

"What is this Ancient gene?" Teyla asked.

"It gives certain people the ability to operate Ancient technology. I am sure there are Athosians with the ability. I haven't had the opportunity to analyze any blood samples from the Pegasus galaxy, yet, but we are all descendants of the Ancients or the Ancestors as your people call them. We've discovered…"

"_You_ discovered. There was no _we_, it was all you." Rodney interrupted Jennifer and shot a look at Carson across the table. He still did not think anyone else in medical was competent because of how rapidly Jennifer accomplishing things.

"Thank you, Rodney, but others did help," Jennifer turned bright red. _Compliments and pride in my work? He's in a great mood today. _"_We_ believe ATA or Ancient Technology Activation is caused by a single gene that's always on, instructing various cells in the body to produce substances that interact with the skin, the nervous system and the brain. These substances called proteins and enzymes give people the ability to use the technology. I have artificially created a way to deliver this gene. Now we need to set up a way for people to get the treatment."

"Well, I'll be there right after this meeting," Rodney said as he fidgeted in his seat.

"We do have other things to discuss before everyone can leave," Elizabeth needed to reign him in or he was going to drag Jennifer to the lab immediately. "Carson, you mentioned no side effects in the test subject. Is that right?"

"Yes, but it has been only a day. There could always be a long-term effect, so we need to follow everyone closely who gets the treatment," Carson answered.

"We will need to ensure anyone who volunteers knows about the potential risks," Weir said looking at Rodney who was still smiling and fidgeting.

"Understood." Carson replied.

The briefing continued with Rodney and Peter updating them about the power situation, Teyla thanking everyone for saving her people and Aiden discussed the Marine security teams. Before the discuion of gate teams began, the expedition leader shot the major a brief look. "We are organizing several of the senior military staff into gate teams. I already told Rodney that many of his scientists would be asked to be on the teams."

"Yes, I am aware of that and we'll make accommodations, but any scientist is still gong to be required to fulfill their regular work in addition to being on a team," Rodney said. He was hoping to be selected so he had a bit of pride in his voice. Jennifer smiled at him, which only caused him to fidget more.

"Carson, is medical ready to deal with gate teams, yet?" Elizabeth asked her CMO.

"Ah… I…" Carson had done nothing to set up a proper medical department like they had at the SGC. His study of the Wraith arm occupied all his time. He realized that somehow people were assigned labs and that everyone had a spot on the rotation. _Who did all that?_

"Carson delegated all that to me," Jennifer jumped in to cover her boss. _Carson was an excellent physician and researcher, but he sucked at organization._ She was a natural organizer, so she jumped in. "We have isolation rooms, surgical suites and recovery rooms all on line and all the medical staff is on a rotation schedule for general medical emergencies. We have staff available to deal with any medical issues twenty-four hours a day."

"Thank you, Doctor Keller," Elizabeth said.

"You are really busy, Doc. It's great to have a real go-getter on this expedition. You know the Marines think you are the nicest drill instructor they ever met," John smiled as Jennifer laughed and turned pink. Rodney glared at the major over her head.

"I'm trying not to be too bossy." Jennifer smiled back. "We have not set up formal quarantine procedures, yet. I would like to have a basic physical requirement for people on gate teams in place. We can use the ones from the SGC, so we don't have to waste time putting our own together."

Carson was once again more proud of Jennifer than he thought possible. He hated dealing with the minutiae of setting up the infirmary. The fact that Jennifer organized the infirmary and worked on the gene therapy explained why she had not rested for days._ I really need to keep a closer eye on her workload. _"There are several physicians who spent a lot of time at Cheyenne Mountain, so we will use their expertise."

Elizabeth was proud of all her senior team. After this meeting, she was going to have a big problem getting John to accept Rodney. Jennifer was extremely efficient and obviously put the success of the mission at the forefront by stepping up to take on things way outside her job description. "I think that is enough for today. I'll let you know when we will have our next meeting. If that is all, we can all get back to work."

"I have a suggestion," Jennifer said.

"Really?" John said glancing at Elizabeth. "I would love to hear it." John knew that Elizabeth was going to have a hard time arguing against Jennifer after this meeting. _The woman was amazing._

"When you offer weapons' training to the non-military folks for your teams, can you open it to everyone?" She directed the question to John.

"Absolutely, Doctor Keller. Interested in carrying a side arm in the infirmary?" The career soldier could not hide his admiration of the young genius. He noticed the look of pure hatred directed at him from Rodney over Jennifer's shoulder, so he smiled more broadly at the woman between them.

"We haven't explored hardly any of the city, so I thought if more of us could protect ourselves, you wouldn't have to leave soldiers guarding us all day."

"That is an excellent idea." Sheppard looked at Elizabeth who shot him an angry look.

"Yes, Doctor Keller, that is a good idea." Doctor Weir saw that the addition of Jennifer Keller to this expedition was proving to be extremely valuable.

The meeting broke up and Carson pulled Jennifer away from Sheppard and McKay. Since he realized he had been neglecting his promise to her Dad, he paid extra attention to the way the major and head scientist were acting around Jennifer. It appeared the men had a competition going for her attention, which did not set well with the protective Scotsman. "Rodney, you can come to the lab in a while and we'll be ready to administer the therapy to you."

* * *

Rodney was watching a Plexiglas cage of mice on a table in the infirmary. He smiled at one of the mice. "You got your eye on anyone?"

"Umm, not really," Carson said as they waited for Jennifer to get things ready. " But now that you mention it, some of those Athosian women are quite beautiful."

"Actually, I was talking to the mouse," McKay laughed.

Jennifer entered with a lab coat on and a tray with vials on ice and a syringe. "It's all set."

"Excellent," Rodney said as he jumped on the infirmary bed rolling up his sleeve.

"I'm surprised you're so eager to volunteer for this, Rodney," Carson said as he watched Jennifer fill the syringe.

"Well you know me… always eager to help." Rodney winced as Beckett forced the sleeve up as high as he could. "Jennifer, aren't you giving me the shot?" There was concern in his voice as he glanced at a smiling Carson.

"Jennifer is not used to giving injections. She's much more of a researcher," Carson said. Jennifer glanced at him with raised eyebrows. _Poor Rodney._ Her mentor smiled as he picked up a rubber strap and wrapped it around Rodney's arm just above the elbow. "So do you have any questions about the process? I mean, you are a scientist."

"Uh, yeah. I'm sorry. Medicine is about as much a science as, uh, I don't know, voodoo?"

"Really?" Jennifer stood in front of Rodney with the syringe waving it under his nose. "Voodoo?"

"Well… Ah… I didn't mean to insult you… Uh… I mean you're a genius. You're a real scientist. This not real science… I mean… This is easy for you… It's not challenging." Rodney stammered because Carson was smacking his arm several times harder than necessary to raise a vein and because he insulted the beautiful woman standing in front of him with a needle in her hand.

"I see?" Jennifer was trying not to laugh. She and Carson loved to torment their friend because he always gave them plenty of ammunition. "Carson, I think I know why the first experiment failed. I forgot to sacrifice a live chicken."

"Oh come on, Jennifer. You know all I need to know is that this will enable me to use Ancient technology like Major Sheppard or Carson." Rodney's blue eyes were pleading with her to understand.

"Yes, hopefully, but the first trial failed," Carson said.

"Well it works in only 48.3 percent of the population." Rodney was suddenly not as confident as he was before. His eyes found Jennifer's only she would not meet his gaze. A thought occurred to the genius. "Jennifer, were you the first trial?"

"Yes. I needed to make sure it was not harmful," she began.

"Are you nuts! Carson, how could you allow her to do that?" Rodney yelled at Carson who looked sheepishly at him.

"She did it herself. I didn't know until it was done, but I kept her under observation yesterday." Beckett did feel guilty.

"Will you two stop it? You are not my father. Let's get on with this before we cut off his circulation." Jennifer motioned to the strap around Rodney's arm and handed Carson the syringe.

McKay pulled his arm away from Carson and the needle. "You had no side effects," he asked looking at Jennifer. _She looks fine with the same beautiful eyes, face, hair..._ _Stop that train of thought right now.  
_

"No, Rodney," Jennifer said like she was talking to a child. "The mouse retrovirus we are using to deliver the missing gene has been deactivated, so other than dry mouth, headache ... the irresistible urge to run in a small wheel there are no side effects."

Carson gave Rodney the shot causing him to grunt and shift. Jennifer looked at her boss and winced at how hard it appeared he inserted the needle into the physicist's arm.

"That's very amusing. So how long 'til it starts working?" Rodney continued to squirm as Carson put some gauze over his arm as he pulled the needle out.

"It could take some time," Jennifer stepped closer to Rodney noticing a small device in his hand. "What's that?"

"Hmm? Oh, something I found in one of the, uh, research labs. Something the, uh, Ancients were experimenting with." The physicist winced as Carson untied the strap around his arm.

"Do you know what it is?" The female doctor asked.

"Uh, pretty sure." He smiled at Jennifer, holding her gaze for a moment longer than usual. "Thank you."

Jumping off the bed, Rodney left the infirmary with a spring in his step.

"Well, you can deal with him if it doesn't work." Carson patted his protégé on the shoulder laughing. Jennifer just sighed heavily. _Please work on him._

* * *

Jennifer received a call that Rodney, John and Peter were involved in an incident in the Gateroom. She ran at full speed down the corridor from the Athosian living quarters where she was having lunch to the infirmary. Sergeant Stackhouse witnessed the event and thought she would want to know one of her friends was injured. According to him, Rodney has some type of personal shield that keeps him from being hurt by fists, falls and bullets. Peter was injured when he punched Rodney. Apparently the shield Rodney put on would not come off. _I'm really glad it worked for him, but why did he put on some strange device? _

"Captain Untouchable." Jennifer heard Carson saying as she came in. He was wrapping Peter's hand.

"Ooh, that's good!" Peter replied laughing.

"I have some better ones," Jennifer said as she walked over to Rodney with a look of anger on her face. _He knows how dangerous things are. A__nd he yelled at **me** for not being careful._"How about Captain Stupid or Mister I'm-an-idiot?"

"Are you guys done? Jennifer, do not lecture me after the stunt you pulled." Rodney began cringing as soon as the words left his mouth. The look on her beautiful face was enough to terrify the bravest man.

"Rodney," Jennifer said in a calm voice. "You do realize if nothing can penetrate the shield that you will not be able to..."

"Eat or drink." Peter finished Jennifer's train of thought.

Rodney stared at them for a moment. Then he turned quickly to a pot of coffee nearby and poured a cup. Trying to drink a mouthful caused the shield to glow green and the liquid to run down his front. Carson and Peter looked at him in shock. Jennifer crossed her arms and gave Rodney an angry look. The physicist looked at her and then poured the rest down his front as the shield glowed keeping it away from him.

"That's great," he moaned.

"Hey, you're going to clean up my floors, you know," Jennifer snapped at him.

"I'm hungry already. What am I going to do? If I don't get this stupid thing off, I'll be dead by the end of the day." Rodney looked to Jennifer for sympathy.

"Relax. You can live three or four days without water," Carson replied.

"Yeah, I'm talking about food." Rodney was starting to panic.

Jennifer reached out to put a hand on his shoulder only to cause the shield to activate instead. Looking into panicky blue eyes, she tried to be calm. _You don't think it's going to hurt him, but Rodney is terrified. You need to be strong for him._

"Did you find any information about the device where you found it?" She kept her hand on his shoulder because it seemed to calm him. _This is weird, like I'm resting my hand on a cool piece of solid air._

"Oh yeah, there were some explicit instructions which I chose to completely ignore." _I am so screwed. _

"Some Ancient technology uses a mental component, Rodney. Try…" Jennifer tried to keep her voice calm and steady.

"Just shut up. I'm thinking." _Please go away. Please go away._

"Is there any chance that the gene therapy isn't permanent?" Peter asked the doctors.

"It's possible," Carson said without any enthusiasm.

"I'm a dead man," Rodney said shutting his eyes.

* * *

Elizabeth walked into the infirmary to talk with Beckett and Keller. She was concerned about losing her Head of Science during her first week. The young woman was reviewing some data on her laptop while Beckett was running an Ancient scanner. "Carson. Doctor Keller."

"Doctor Weir," Carson looked up and nodded.

"Doctor Weir," Jennifer said putting her computer down as the senior staff members came over to her desk.

"So Grodin's got a team going through the Ancient research material that accompanied the shield device, but McKay's been through it and he didn't find anything helpful… and he is the smartest guy here," Elizabeth said.

"So he likes to tell us," Carson said.

"Doctor Keller, could this be the result of artificially imposing the gene?" Weir asked.

Carson was shaking his head, but looked to Jennifer to offer an explanation. _It's her research after all._

"I don't think so. I do have another theory, however. We know there is a mental component to Ancient technology. So it stands to reason that Doctor McKay should be able to shut this thing off with his mind." Jennifer was concerned for Rodney, but did not believe he was in real danger.

"Are you suggesting he doesn't want to shut it off?" Elizabeth asked incredulously. "I don't think he wants to die of starvation."

"He's not close to death from starvation or dehydration," Jennifer said.

"You think when it comes down to it, the shield will just shut itself down?" Elizabeth asked

"The Ancients were smart enough to build fail safes into their other technology. This entire city rose from the deep of the ocean when danger was imminent. Why would they design a personal shield that would kill you?" Jennifer explained.

"I certainly hope you're right, Doctor Keller." Elizabeth knew Rodney and the young physician were good friends, so she accepted Jennifer's reasoning. _I doubt she would be this calm if he was in danger._

"This place is pretty intimidating. A giant abandoned city full of things way beyond our level of understanding; impending threat of attack from space vampires," Jennifer continued.

"No question, it gets bloody creepy here at night," Beckett added.

"So your professional opinion is that when McKay wants this to come off because of hunger, thirst, or mortal peril, it will come off?" Weir asked.

"Yes," Jennifer said with confidence. _It will not allow him to die. He's just going to have to ride it out. At least he won't be so reckless in the future._

* * *

In the Athosian living quarters, John Sheppard sat on the end of a bed with a group of Athosian children sitting on the floor in front of him. Teyla and Jennifer were seated nearby with Halling standing on crutches behind them. The major was telling the children a bedtime story.

"Well, they thought he was finally dead, but when they turned their backs to go." John paused, turning on a flashlight and shining it into his face. "His cold dead eyes opened beneath his hockey mask and he rose up with his giant bloody knife..." John jumped up wielding the flashlight like a knife.

"What's a hockey mask?" Jinto asked.

"Hockey is a game. The guys skate around and try to put a puck into the net. The goalies wear masks. It's really ... scary." The Athosian children stared at him blankly. He looked to Jennifer for sympathy, but she was trying not to laugh.

"Tell us more of this game," Jinto begged.

"Can we play it?" Wex added.

"Actually, I don't really see the attraction. Now football … football is a real man's sport, but, uh, we'll save that for another time," John stopped when he saw Jennifer glaring at him. "What?"

"Hockey is a great sport," she said in a haughty voice.

"Why the hell do you like hockey, you're American?" John sounded outraged.

"I'm from Wisconsin. There is a lot of great hockey in my area." Jennifer got up moving toward the hallway. "I gotta go. I'm on duty this evening. I've gotta pay up to my colleagues for taking so much time on my research the last few days."

"Well, be sure to get some sleep, so we can start your weapon's training tomorrow," John said.

"Tomorrow night's story will be Star Wars," Jennifer added as she started.

"Fighting amongst the stars? That sounds cool," Jinto said.

"Hey, my stories are cooler," the major said pouting.

The young doctor smiled sweetly at the little boy and the bigger, _little_ boy as well. "See you guys tomorrow."

* * *

Jennifer was designing a process to scale-up the production of her gene therapy for mass distribution on her computer during the night. _Assuming the masses want to try it._

"Doctor Keller," a deep voice called her name.

Looking up she saw Kanaan enter the infirmary with Teyla. "Hello, what…"

"Doctor Keller, Jinto is missing. Is he here?" Teyla asked.

"No. What happened? Has anyone notified John?"

"Yes, Halling went to get him," Teyla explained.

"I really want to help search, but I need to cover the infirmary." Jennifer was concerned for Jinto. He was a wonderful little boy and she did not want to think of him getting hurt in this dangerous city.

"It is okay. You should stay here in case he comes here. He is quite fond of you," Kanaan said.

"I will call if he shows up. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you need me and I'll leave," Jennifer said.

"Thank you, Doctor Keller," Kanaan and Teyla both nodded to the young doctor.

"Rodney," Jennifer called him on her radio.

"What?" Rodney's voice barked back.

He seemed mad at her about her lack of sympathy for him earlier in the day. She knew the shield would not harm him, so she was using this as a big lesson for him._ If he's going to criticize me, then he better practice what he preaches._

"Can't you use the sensors to find Jinto?" Jennifer asked.

"Not easily. Where are you?" Rodney asked.

"I'm stuck in the infirmary and can't leave."

"The soldiers will take care of it so stay put. I need to go," he said sounding annoyed.

"Keep me posted, please. He's a sweet kid, I'd hate for him to get hurt." Jennifer could not keep concern from her voice even though she was annoyed with the way Rodney ordered her to stay.

"We'll find him. Don't worry." Rodney's voice sounded nicer this time.

"Thanks." Jennifer was then relegated to waiting, which she despised more than anything.

* * *

A short while later, lights started flickering throughout the infirmary. Jennifer was there with Marie and Amanda Cole.

"What's going on?" Amanda asked.

"Not sure, I'll call the control room," Jennifer replied. Stepping aside, she called Rodney on the radio.

"Can't talk. Got lots of problems, just stay put." Rodney sounded really busy, so Jennifer heeded his request this time.

"Looks like we have to wait." Jennifer looked at the other women and said a silent prayer that Jinto was safe and that this was not affecting him.

Sergeants Richards and Warrington come to the infirmary about a half hour later. They informed Jennifer and the others that there was some type of disturbance within the base. Richards and Warrington were posted with them for security. A few other medical staff, including Carson, arrived just in case they were needed.

After they heard Halling make his plea over the PA for Jinto to return, they received notification that McKay collapsed in the control room. Jennifer felt her heart drop. Immediately, she looked at Carson as he jumped up and headed out with Bruce Lydon, the only male nurse on the staff to retrieve Rodney.

Jennifer desperately wanted to go and knew that Carson was trying to shield her. _Like he can shield me if my therapy harms Rodney. What if he is having a side effect? He has a lot of allergies. They could cause complications. Oh, hurry up and get him back here, Carson! _To keep herself busy, she set up a bed with scanning equipment and other supplies. _Wait, you won't be able to treat him because of that shield. _

When Carson, Sheppard and Bruce arrived with a walking and talking McKay, Jennifer raced to them. She pulled herself back from hugging him at the last moment because the room was crowded and because he would not feel it with the shield still on.

"In here." A flustered and shaking Jennifer Keller led them to another room. Rodney sat on the edge of a bed with Jennifer, John, and Carson standing around him.

"Since we cannot measure your pulse, blood pressure or anything else because of that shield, I can only conclude that you fainted," Jennifer said with frustration in her voice_. If he is having a side effect from the treatment, we'll never figure it out._

"Oh, there's gotta be a better word," Rodney said angrily at Jennifer.

"_Faint_ is the proper medical term," Carson said.

"I passed out from ... manly hunger." The physicist could not meet the eye of the beautiful woman. "Stop glaring at me, Jennifer. You took that treatment when it could have killed you, so don't act superior to me."

"I knew it would not kill me. I was trying to protect all the rest of you from nasty side effects. I obviously wasted my time because you ran off and grabbed the first Ancient device you could. Now I can't even examine you to see if you really are sick. You're pale, look sweaty and have shaky breathing and you collapsed. I can't tell anything else, so I'm saying you fainted."

"Anyone ever tell you that you have lousy bedside manners, Doctor Keller?" He snarked at her. _This is not my fault._

"Well, hang in there," John said as he activated his headset radio. "Doctor Weir, this is Sheppard. Uh, McKay's okay. He, uh, he fainted."

"Oh, yes, very sympathetic. Let's all mock the dying man!" Rodney glared at Jennifer and Carson. "Thank you for nothing."

* * *

Jennifer was trying to get some rest in her office on the cot she used as a bed. Elizabeth Weir's voice came of the PA system. "Attention, everyone, this is Weir. For the time being, we need you all to remain in your quarters unless otherwise instructed. If you see anything out ..."

"Hello? Can you hear me? Can anyone hear me?" The voice of Jinto interrupted Elizabeth. Jennifer leaped out of bed and pulled on her shoes.

"Jinto?" Sheppard's voice was next.

Jennifer raced to the door listening to the exchange along with everyone else in the city. When she got to the entrance, Sergeant Richards blocked her way.

"Come on Sarge, please let me go. Jinto could be hurt. I have help find him," she pleaded with the stony face before her. His eyes and jaw were set.

"I cannot let you do that Doctor Keller. You and all your colleagues need to stay here."

Jennifer knew it was going to be useless to beg or plead with him any further. He was a career soldier that would follow his orders until they killed him. "Can you tell me what's going on? Why the lock down? I thought you were patrolling the corridors. Why did Elizabeth order us to stay in?"

Normally, Dwayne would not explain his orders to anyone, but Doctor Keller was not just anyone. She was a senior member of the expedition no matter how young she was. "There is an entity lose in the city that drains power. It could be dangerous to us as well as the power generators."

Jennifer was shocked that he offered an explanation to her. "Thank you, Sergeant. I appreciate the information. Of course we'll stay here so you can deal with the threat."

A little later another call came in for a medical emergency, Aiden Ford was injured. Sergeant Stackhouse was upset because he let one of his commanding officers get hurt and would not leave his side even after a visit by Sheppard and Weir. Jennifer walked past Sergeant Richards and paused.

"Sarge, would you allow me to go down the corridor to a supply area if I have an escort?" She asked trying to tell him with her eyes what she was trying to do by by glancing toward Stackhouse.

"Of course, Doctor Keller," the Gunny Sergeant said. "Stackhouse, front and center."

His deep voice carried into the next room. The young man came running out to stand at attention in front of the senior sergeant.

"I need you to escort Doctor Keller to get some supplies." The look he gave the young man plainly told him that this was his second chance. Because Stackhouse felt guilty about Ford and knew Jennifer was a VIP, Richards knew he would not fail this mission.

* * *

In the research lab where they found Jinto and the Ancient device, Weir, Sheppard and McKay were discussing the containment device and how the creature might be lured back.

"This is much simpler than I thought. It's kind of like a mousetrap. This button here causes the device to emit an energy signature that attracts the creature. This one shuts it in. The only downside is it looks like, uh, someone's actually gonna have to be here to press the buttons," Rodney explained.

"I'll do it," Sheppard volunteered.

"Okay." Rodney nodded and headed toward the newly discovered transporter.

"Wait a minute, Rodney. You're still wearing the shield. Now isn't there a chance that if something went wrong, that would protect you?" Elizabeth said as she and Sheppard turned to look at the scientist.

As McKay looked at them, the light on the shield device went out and it fell off. Rodney caught it. Elizabeth nodded to Sheppard who rolled his eyes. Oblivious to their exchange, McKay rummaged in his jacket pocket for an energy bar, which he took a large bite out of causing him to smile happily.

"It's just like Jennifer predicted about when it would come off," Elizabeth said turning back to look at the machine.

"What do you mean just like Jennifer predicted?" Rodney walked back to them. "You think I wanted it to come off just now? Because I'm scared? Did she say I was _scared_? I'm not scared. I'll stay, I'll do this." _Jennifer was talking about me with **them**? She said I was scared? _The pain Rodney felt was unlike any he had felt before. Jennifer, his friend, the woman who he cared about more than anybody else thought he was a coward.

"No, that's okay. You might faint again," John said rolling his eyes.

"Look, it's just not working any more, that's all. Look. See, it doesn't work on you either." Rodney tried to attach it to Sheppard.

"Look, Jennifer said she did not think it was going to let you die." Elizabeth saw an unfamiliar emotion cross Rodney's face. In the few years she had known the arrogant physicist, she never saw him display sadness, but she thought for a brief instant it was in his eyes.

"It's just a coincidence that it happened to stop working now." Rodney glared at the two of them. He was beside himself with a sense of betrayal. _This is why you don't make friends. They just stab you in the back. _The angry man had a desire to confront Jennifer. Shifting uncomfortably, he said, "I need a drink."

"Go," Sheppard said with disgust in his voice. He looked at Elizabeth who could not meet his eye. _Enough of this McKay nonsense._ John knew Elizabeth could read his thoughts because she looked equally annoyed with the genius.

* * *

Rodney stormed into the infirmary and saw Sergeant Richards at the door. "Where's Jennifer?"

Since Rodney's voice was raised, several of the medical staff as well as the other Marine assigned guard duty looked at the agitated man. His hands were twitching and he did not stand still.

"She will be back with Sergeant Stackhouse in a moment." Richards could see that McKay was upset.

"She's out there!" The angry scientist was ready to scream at her for betraying him, but now he was consumed by concern. "What the hell is she doing in the corridors? Everyone was told to stay put!"

"She is perfectly safe. They only went to a supply room down the corridor. We have two soldiers patrolling near here as well as her escort," Richards kept his voice calm and steady. He knew the scientist truly cared for Doctor Keller.

Rodney had no knowledge of how to deal with the variety of emotions running through him; disappointment, hurt, concern, and anger. He chose the one he was most comfortable with and clung to anger. Jennifer walked in moments later with some boxes and a young Marine.

"In your office, now." Rodney grabbed the boxes from her hands and headed toward the back of the infirmary and Jennifer's office.

Jennifer had not seen him since his fainting spell the previous night. She noticed he was not glowing green where he touched the boxes. A smile crossed her lips. "It came off. I knew it wouldn't let you starve to death."

"Really?" Rodney plunked the box on a bed near her office. "That's not what you said to Elizabeth. How dare you go to my boss and call me a coward?"

Jennifer was shocked. She stood with her mouth open and stared into the angry blue eyes glaring at her. "Rodney, I never would say anything like that. There must have been a misunderstanding. Carson was…"

"Carson was there too? How about your precious Major Sheppard? Do you just sit around and talk about me?" He threw is hands in the air. "You know what. Forget it! I don't have time for this. I shouldn't have wasted my time coming here."

McKay stormed back past her shouting at Richards. "Don't let anyone out of here again, Sergeant. It's too dangerous out there."

Rodney had a huge rant prepared for her, but the minute he saw the look of shock and fear on Jennifer's face he could not do it. She appeared genuinely upset. _Maybe Jennifer didn't say I was a coward. Actually, Elizabeth never said that either. _Realizing he was in the corridor with a very angry soldier tailing him, he made his way back to the control tower via the mess hall as quickly as he could.

Jennifer was trembling when she stepped into her office and slumped onto the cot. _What just happened? I never called Rodney a coward. What did Doctor Weir say to him?_ A thousand thoughts went through her mind._ I have to make him understand I'd never say anything to hurt him. He's…_ Jennifer did not want to think of what Rodney meant to her. When this emergency was over, she vowed to set him down, even if it meant locking them in a room, to sort this out.

* * *

In the control room, Rodney watched the entity engulf the MALP and appear to feed on the Stargate. _I knew it wouldn't work. Now it's going to feed off the enormous amount of energy from the active Stargate and then kill all of us._ His thoughts went immediately to Jennifer. Even though he was angry and hurt, he could not for a moment imagine her being injured in any way. _How crazy is that? I'm ready to scream my head off at her, but I don't want anything to happen to her._

The others in the control room were talking in panicky voices about what to do. Rodney looked down at the Ancient shield device that ended up in his hand. _Where did it come from? _For some reason, he thought he left it in the lab. _Was Jennifer right that it came off because I did not want to die? Will it protect me for the same reason?_ He put it on himself and thought only of protecting Jennifer and the others. Walking quietly behind the others, he looked down into the Gateroom, into the black cloud. _This better work._

Rodney walked down the stairs with only one intention. Get to the generator and toss it through the Stargate. Pausing for a moment, he entered the black shadow that clung to the lower level of the Gateroom. It appeared as if he was inside a dark thundercloud. There were charged particles everywhere with small bolts that looked like lightning passing between them. He saw the case and took it off the MALP throwing it with all his strength into the event horizon. Rodney did not remember anything after that.

* * *

"Medical emergency in the Gateroom," Sheppard's voice came into Jennifer's earwig. Jumping from her cot and running into the infirmary, she grabbed an emergency medical kit and yelled for Bruce to join her. Richards shouted for Warrington and Markham to accompany them. Jennifer had no idea who was injured, but it must be someone from the senior team. _Please do not let it be Rodney. I have to talk to him._

The scene in front of Jennifer terrified her more than the thought of drowning when they first arrived. Rodney was lying in the middle of the Gateroom with Peter and Elizabeth leaning over him. Sheppard and Teyla stood close by.

"Rodney!" she yelled and sprinted up the steps, sliding into place next to him.

"Took you long enough," Rodney said smiling up at her. She looked more beautiful than he remembered. _It must be the light through the colored windows._

"Don't move! What happened?" Jennifer reached out to take his pulse. _Concentrate. Focus. You are going to have to treat your friends all the time. Learn to deal with it._

John excitedly explained that Rodney put on the shield, walked into the cloud and saved the day. Seeing the awe on John's face made Jennifer happy. It had appeared that the two men did not like each other the last few days. Now the young woman was certain they could be friends.

"I think I was knocked out," Rodney said trying to sit up.

"Stop." Jennifer put her hand on his shoulder holding him down. Looking at Bruce, she said, "Get a gurney. We'll bring him to the infirmary that way."

"I am not going to be rolled around like an invalid," Rodney said sitting up again.

"Lie down. I am not going to say it again. Don't make me restrain you." Jennifer used her stern voice and got compliance from him.

An image of Jennifer pressing him to the floor with her body stopped the physicist from moving. He felt a familiar sensation in his lower body and started reciting Pi to quell it.

Jennifer and Bruce helped load Rodney onto the gurney with Carson and Doctor Merkel. They brought him to the infirmary where he was scanned and had blood drawn by Jennifer.

"Hey, McKay! Are you going to live?" Sheppard came over to stand next to his bed.

"According to Jennifer, I'll live." Rodney normally hated being in the infirmary and would do anything to avoid being there, but with the beautiful doctor fawning all over him, getting him a comfy pillow and personally going to get a tray of food staying here was appealing.

"I have to say, I didn't think you had it in you," John said shaking his head.

"Well neither did I," Rodney said sheepishly.

"Well, I'm here to ask you if you'd like to join my gate team?" John had given some serious thought to Jennifer versus Rodney and finally decided on McKay because he now could use Ancient tech and showed that he had courage. He realized the team dynamic with the arrogant, self-centered genius as a member would need some work, but having McKay help find ZPMs will benefit them all. He could have put Rodney on another gate team, but did not want to get the snarky scientist killed.

Jennifer was coming back with Rodney's tray of food when she overheard John ask him to be on the gate team. She could not hold in her grin. _Rodney is going to be on SGA-1. I knew John was smart enough to pick him._

"Hello, Doctor Keller," Sergeant Richards said as he came up behind her.

"Sarge, you startled me."

"You need to pay attention at all times, Doctor," he said smiling at her.

"Understood. Once I get my weapons certification, I'll work on special ops tactics," she said laughing with the Marine.

"I thought I heard your sweet voice. How are you doing, Doc?" John said coming out of the recovery room that Rodney was in.

"I'm fine. If you two would excuse me, I need to bring Rodney his meal before it gets cold."

"You are hand delivering meals? I can't wait until I get injured," Sheppard said with a big grin.

"Be careful what you wish for." Jennifer smiled back at him and headed to Rodney's bedside.

"Are you still feeling okay?" The physician asked, putting a table over her patient and setting his meal on it.

"I'm fine," Rodney smiled as he saw meatloaf with mashed potatoes and carrots._ Especially now that Sheppard is gone._ Watching John flirt with Jennifer angered him more than anything. _I'll be able to keep a better eye on the major now that we'll be on the same team._

"I know you like MREs so I decided to grab one of the better ones before we are stuck with the disgusting ones," she said. It was difficult to tell if he was still angry with her, so she decided to address it. "Rodney, you have to believe that I never said you were a coward. I only said that I did not think the shield would let you die or that you would let yourself die because of it. You know as well as I do that the neural component of Ancient genes is really unknown."

"Jennifer, I'm the one who's sorry. I never should have thought that in the first place. You've been the best friend I've ever had," he stopped talking and started to turn red. Suddenly his food was really interesting and he shoveled more in to keep himself from saying anything else.

Jennifer chuckled. "You're my best friend, too. Just don't tell Carson. He'll get emotional on me. I don't need that."

Rodney laughed. "So, you've been here a long time. Shouldn't you get to your quarters for some rest?" _Not that I want you to leave._

"Actually." Jennifer was embarrassed. "I haven't found quarters, yet. I've been busy and… well…too frightened to sleep away from people. At least here, there is always someone around."

"Really?" Rodney could not believe that Jennifer was frightened. He always thought of her as being really brave and strong. "Well, when I get out of here, we'll go apartment hunting so you and Scruffy Dog have a place to call home."

"Scruffy Dog? You remembered the name of my twenty-year-old stuffed dog?" Jennifer was shocked.

"I always remember the important things." Rodney turned back to his food smiling.

Jennifer felt warmth spread through her body. _He thinks I'm important and his best friend.  
_

* * *

**AN: This was a real long one, so I hope it was enjoyable. On to 38 Minutes. Should I beat up on Kavanaugh more than Elizabeth? HHMM Absolutely!**


	8. Thirtyeight Minutes

**MGM owns all characters except my OCs. Some dialogue from GateWorld.  
**

**  
Thanks to Scr1tno & dwparsnip for their beta work. Thank you for the reviews because they keep me going.**

* * *

Since the initial reason for the expedition was to set up a base of operations in the Pegasus Galaxy in the City of the Ancients, the need for gate teams was minimal during the planning stages. Colonel Sumner, because of his years of service to the SGC was going to lead any team that needed to go off world. Now people who never would have left the city were required to get a crash course on being on a gate team. Due to this large volume of military and scientific staff that needed physicals to prepare for off world missions, Jennifer was forced to assist with them. They used the procedures set in place at the SGC. Once they got familiar with the hazards of the Pegasus galaxy, they would modify them. Taking blood pressure, drawing blood and asking personal questions of people she considered to be friends was not something she enjoyed doing. After seeing Doctor Gaul, Doctor Peterson, Sergeant Bates, Sergeant Richards and Major Sheppard, she was ready for a break. _Only two more people._

The next person to enter the examination room sent her heart racing and pushed any notions of leaving from her brain. Since they found her quarters two weeks ago, Rodney and Jennifer saw each other once a day at breakfast and always with other people. The physician found herself wanting to be alone with him quite often. His personality was so different when it was just the two of them. There was a sweetness that he never exhibited around anyone else. Rodney had an angry expression on his face as he glared at his tablet and it appeared that he did not see her standing by the sink getting out a fresh pair of gloves. The thought of having him in his boxers in the examination room, which suddenly seemed too small, sent a tremor through her body followed by a wave of heat. She knew this would keep her from sleeping soundly for the next month.

"Rodney?" Her voice sounded weak to her ears.

"Jennifer!" Rodney almost dropped his tablet. He was _not_ expecting _her_ to do his physical. "What are you doing here? Doesn't Carson have enough physicians to do this?"

He was trying to think of her as just a friend and colleague, but his body had other ideas. _Now I'm was supposed to let her poke and prod me. Why am I being tortured so much?_

"I _am_ a physician," Jennifer said as a smile spread over her face. Rodney's dislike of her profession and the fact that he pretended she was not in _it_ always made her laugh.

"Well…Ah… You're too smart to be a doctor. When I was a kid, I almost died because the quack where I grew up didn't believe anyone could be allergic to citrus. After an anaphylactic shock, he believed me. And then when I was on a scouting trip, I didn't eat for three hours and collapsed. The idiot at the camp said I was faking it so I didn't have to sleep in the woods. Three hours later, a helicopter had to fly me to the hospital because I was in a hypoglycemic shock from not eating in six hours." Rodney's voice increased in volume and speed during his rant causing Jennifer to move closer to him.

"Rodney, calm down. I'm sorry those doctors didn't pay attention to you, but you can't blame all of us for a few bad apples," Jennifer said in a soothing voice.

Rodney stared into the soft brown eyes of the woman he could not stop dreaming about. If he did not pass out immediately from exhaustion when he went to bed, her smile or laugh would invade his sleep and set his body on fire. Never in his life had he resorted to cold showers until he met this beautiful woman. "Uh… Sorry. Kavanagh just screwed up another experiment and…I…Let's get this over with. I need to get back to the lab."

"Okay. Take off your clothes. T-shirt and boxers only. Socks can stay on, too," Jennifer said as if on autopilot. She had been saying it a lot this morning but in this case, she felt her cheeks turning bright red. Quickly, the physician turned to grab her tablet and pull up his medical file.

Rodney stood staring like an idiot. _Did she just tell me to undress?_ He seemed to lose his higher brain functions right then.

_You're a physician. You have seen naked men before._ Jennifer took deep breaths and tried to put on her calm, professional face before she turned back to Rodney. The physicist was still standing where she left him. "Rodney, come on I've got another physical after yours. Do you need help?" As soon as the words left her mouth, she turned even redder and one hand flew up to cover her mouth. "I… Didn't mean… I…Ah."

"What? No. No! Of course not." _Help me undress?_ _I barely kept it together when she was treating me after my near-death experience. _

"I need to get some supplies. I'll be right back." Jennifer turned quickly and left the room. Leaning against the wall outside the exam room, she took a deep breath. Rodney thought of her as a friend; he even said she was his best friend. _Get a grip. You just made a fool of yourself, again._

After she left, Rodney set his tablet on a bench and began to remove his clothing. Although he was terrified of his body's reaction to her touch, he did want her as his doctor. Contrary to what he said to her, he thought her bedside manner was wonderful. She was a genius and not going to neglect his care, either. _And she's incredibly beautiful. Not too often do I get a beautiful woman to touch me._

When she returned with supplies to draw his blood, Jennifer saw a brief look of fear on his face. _We're friends, so this is going to be awkward._ The doctor pulled on her examination gloves as the thought of touching Rodney without them sent another shiver through her body. _Stop it. He is a patient and you are a physician. You should never have such thoughts about someone in your care._

"All set?" Rodney was seated on the examination table with a sheet pulled across his lap.

Jennifer could make out black boxers with something yellow on them under the sheet. It looked square. "Do you have on SpongeBob SquarePants underwear?" It was impossible to keep a straight face or the laughter out of her voice.

Rodney turned bright red pulling the sheet tighter around his middle and said with as much snark as he could muster in his underwear, "You're acting _real_ professional. I don't think doctors should laugh at their patients."

Jennifer tried to contain her giggles. The thought of the uber-confident, arrogant man in front of her picking out underwear with cartoon characters on them was more humorous than anything she had seen in a long time. "Sorry. I'll try to be more professional. I should have worn _Tinkerbelle_ underwear."

At the mention of the little blond character, Rodney got red and crossed his arms defensively over his chest. "I'd pay money to see that."

Suddenly, they both realized the meaning of his statement. Rodney started stammering and Jennifer turned red again. "That sounded awful. Jennifer I didn't mean… You know I'd never think of you like _that_. We're friends…I…"

"Rodney, it's fine. I know what you meant. It's called joking around, by the way." Jennifer could not keep disappointment out of her voice. _We're friends. I would never think of you like that._ Those words stung. Over the last few months, she liked to pretend there was more to their relationship than friendship, but he would keep reminding her otherwise. Deciding she was being immature once again, Jennifer concentrated on his physical.

Rodney's heart was racing when she lifted his t-shirt to listen to his heartbeat. He found he could not look at her after his comment about seeing her in Tinkerbelle underwear. If he did not have the sheet across his lap she would have _seen_ with her own eyes that he _absolutely_ thought about her in _that_ manner. As he started reciting every constant he could think of and the periodic table for good measure, she finally finished his examination.

Jennifer was trying to breathe. Even though she had on gloves, she felt the warmth of Rodney's skin under her hands and it caused her heart to race and breathing to become erratic. _Now time for the stupid questions._ She began going down the list: allergies, known conditions, medications, trouble sleeping and a history of the following… At the bottom was a statement the IOA inserted, which gave Jennifer and the others a big laugh. Somehow it was not as humorous when she faced Rodney in his underwear. Shifting uncomfortably and not looking at him, she said, "I need to read this from the IOA and we're done. I must remind you that sexual activity should be avoided at all times with anyone you should meet off-world or within your own expedition. If said activity occurs, you should take every precaution available to prevent pregnancy or the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases."

Rodney suddenly could not breathe when Jennifer said the words _sexual activity_. He started coughing and actually slid off the bed.

"Rodney, are you okay?" Jennifer dropped her tablet to the floor where it landed with a crash and reached out to steady him, her hands coming in contact with him. This seemed to make him worse. "Rodney, look at me. What's wrong?"

All the commotion caused Carson to come running in. "Jennifer, is everything okay?"

The sight before his eyes made him want to laugh, but Jennifer's concern that something was wrong with the red-faced, coughing scientist in front of her showed on her face. Rodney was wearing ridiculous underwear and was trying to back away from Jennifer even though he did not appear too steady on his feet. The CMO rushed over to grab McKay before he fell on the smaller woman.

"Jennifer, you should get him some water or something," Carson said. "Rodney, are you okay?"

Once Jennifer left the room, Rodney seemed to calm down. Looking at his friend, the embarrassed man shook his head. "I'm fine. I need to go."

"You looked like you were going to have a seizure. What happened?" Rodney was a terrible liar and Carson knew he was not telling him something.

Rodney quickly turned yanking his clothing off the bed. _What an idiot? You can't even hear her say the word sex without losing it. You are pathetic._ "I'm really behind on some experiments. Since I'm going out tomorrow with my team, I need to go. Tell Jennifer I'll see her when I'm back from the mission tomorrow." He turned and almost ran to the bathroom to put his clothes on.

"Carson, where did Rodney go?" Jennifer returned with a glass of water.

"Said he had to run to an experiment." The older doctor looked at his young friend. "What was going on in here?"

"I don't know what happened," Jennifer was concerned. "Do you think he'll be okay?"

"Sure. What were you discussing when he started coughing and losing it?"

Jennifer turned bright red but managed to say with a straight face, "Nothing important."

* * *

The incident with Rodney left her flustered with erratic breathing and a flushed face. She heard someone enter the room and hoped Rodney came back to see her. Instead she saw Peter Kavanagh. "What can I do for you Doctor Kavanagh? I was not aware you were selected for a gate team."

"I have too many important things to do around the base than romp through the Gate. I came here looking for a physician. Sorry to disappoint you by not being one of your soldiers. You look like you're recovering from _examining_ one of them." Kavanagh glared down at her from his much taller height. His dislike of the perky young woman was evident on his face. _Women are all idiots if they don't see how much smarter and better than these stupid soldiers I am. You're just like all the others no matter how smart you claim to be._

"What are you talking about?" Jennifer had no time for his obnoxious behavior.

"You don't fool me, Doctor Keller. I can see right through you. You appear all sweet and innocent, wrapping most of my department and all the jarheads around your finger but I know you're just like any other woman. You enjoy manipulating men to get what you want," Peter said.

"I have no idea what you're babbling about but I do _know_ that I don't like your tone." Jennifer was livid. A desire to smack the conceited grin off his face filled her.

"Fine, I'll spell it out for you. I know you're _doing_ half the base, so don't try to act innocent with me."

The sound of flesh hitting flesh was so loud that Sergeant Stackhouse heard it outside the room, so he went to investigate. The scene before him got his blood boiling. Peter Kavanagh was pointing a finger in the face of Jennifer Keller yelling, "You're going to pay for that, Doctor Keller. You won't get away with hitting me."

"If she hit you, you deserved it," Stackhouse growled. He moved quickly to insert himself between the petite physician and the bigger scientist.

"Of course one of your soldier-boys will come to your aid. It doesn't matter. I'm going to Beckett and Weir with this," Kavanagh threatened.

"Well, I'll go to McKay and tell him what you said about me." Jennifer's hand stung but she did not care. He just said she was sleeping with most of the men on the base. _What a creep!_

"What did he say?" Stackhouse asked her without turning. His eyes were locked on Kavanagh. His arms hung loose at his side waiting for a reason to slug the man. _If he insulted Jennifer, he was going to pay._

"Ha. McKay could care less about you or anyone else around here except himself. His head is so far up his own ass that he doesn't know if he's coming or going. If he wasn't in with Carter, I'd be in charge of science around here." Kavanagh looked at Jennifer and the Marine shaking his head. "I hope you two have some fun. This is going in your file, Doctor Keller. No one hits me."

"Get the hell out of here, Kavanagh, or I'll remove you," Sergeant Stackhouse said in a quiet voice. He did not move a muscle when he spoke. His body was tense and prepared for battle.

"You make me sick," the scientist said as he turned and left. _Thinks she can threaten me. I'll show her.  
_

Tommy Stackhouse turned and looked at the woman who was trembling with anger. She was cradling her right hand. "Doctor Keller, did he hurt you?"

"No. He just pissed me off. He said…" Jennifer stopped. _I can't repeat what he said. _

"What did he say?" Stackhouse asked.

At that moment, Carson poked his head in. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to take Doctor Keller. You'll have to go next door, lad."

"Okay, Doctor Beckett," Stackhouse replied and turning to Jennifer, he said, "I'll take care of this. Don't you worry; he won't get away with being rude."

"No you won't. I'll handle it," Jennifer said as she walked toward the door. The cocky young Marine could get thrown in the brig if he was stupid. _Of course, I have no idea what I'll do._ Running to tattle to Rodney, Carson or Weir did not appeal to her. "Promise me you will let this drop."

"We can talk about it some more, Doctor Keller," Stackhouse said. _It was not a lie. We will talk again after I deal with Kavanagh._ Tommy had to prepare for his first away mission with his CO, Major Sheppard and Lieutenant Ford, so Kavanagh would have to wait until he got back tomorrow night. While he had to wait a few minutes for another doctor to be freed up, he contacted Sergeants Markham, Richards, Warrington, and a few others. He was going to brief them on what happened and they would come up with a plan for that arrogant asshole. _No one is rude and disrespectful to Jennifer. No one._

* * *

Although Rodney was excited about being selected to the first gate team in the Pegasus galaxy and was developing a favorable relationship with his new team leader, he was extremely pissed with Sheppard at the moment. _Why did Sheppard pick today for this mission? Of all the days, why October the eighteenth?_ The physicist was waiting for this day for a couple of months. He had reminders pop up daily for the last week on his calendar. Today was Jennifer Keller's twenty-sixth birthday. It was weird for him to be so interested in someone else's birthday. Even as a kid, his sister's birthday always surprised him._ Whoa, where did that come from? I haven't thought about her in a couple years. Jeannie would be a couple years older than Jennifer, I think. Jennifer must remind me of Jeannie: smart, funny and a pain in my backside. But I __**don't**__ think of Jennifer as a sister._ His search for a present in the Pegasus galaxy provided few options. Trying to think of a present to give someone on Earth would have been nearly impossible for the clueless man, but now it _was_ impossible. Last night as he lay in bed he remembered something Jennifer mentioned when they were at her house and it got his genius mind racing.

"McKay, are you ready to go?" Ford called out enthusiastically as Rodney entered the armory to collect his gear.

"Ready to go." A degree of excitement with all the guns and weapons in the room filled Rodney. "Just wish it was another day."

"What's wrong with today? Something more important to do?" John said coming in behind Rodney and grabbing a Tac vest off the rack.

"Yes, I do have more important things to do than investigate a Wraith outpost," Rodney said in an angrier voice than he felt. As he turned to find a holster and handgun, he noticed Markham and Stackhouse in the corner deep in conversation. When they glanced at him they nodded. The physicist had never been on a sports team. Sure there was the chess club, physics club and such, but he never was a _part_ of a team. He was always the smartest and the best, which did not make him _just_ _another_ guy. _Now I was finally picked to be on a team._

"Hot date," Ford said laughing. Sheppard joined in.

"Good morning," Teyla said as she moved to gather a weapon.

"All right, listen up," Sheppard began his briefing while they geared up. They were returning to the planet where Teyla was held by the Wraith. Their mission was to gather intelligence only. Markham and Stackhouse would be taking turns flying the jumper.

As they moved out, Rodney glanced at his watch to see that it was time for Jennifer to have breakfast. It was usually the only meal they shared everyday because he had his alarm set. He hoped Carson remembered her birthday. It would be terrible for her to think no one remembered. His desire to surprise her this evening kept him from sending e-mail before he left._  
_

* * *

In the mess hall, Jennifer sat with Miko, Zelenka, Grodin, Abrams, Gaul and Pamela Simpson. They were all laughing about Rodney's behavior since his brush with death and selection to SGA1.

"He will not even get his own coffee," Radek said causing Jennifer to almost spew hers all over Simpson seated across from her.

"He is our leader. We should be honored to serve him. If he wants coffee, I'll get him coffee," Miko said shyly from Jennifer's left.

"Serve him? He's not your leader. Doctor Weir is. You and I need to have a serious conversation about how to treat Doctor McKay," Jennifer said to the Japanese physicist.

"Yes, Jennifer is the _expert_ on how to handle Doctor McKay," Peter said.

"Do tell," Brendan said. Doctor Gaul got his PhD in astronomy while McKay was getting his in astrophysics. They had a competition going on between them. Brendan just uncovered an observatory on the top of a tower on the north side of the city, which annoyed Rodney because he does not have time to explore.

"I gotta hear this," Simpson said with a smile. They all leaned closer to Peter.

Peter then recited the story of Jennifer's first presentation about the Ancient gene. He said how she stroked Rodney's ego, was as sweet as honey and countered every one of his issues with her work with data and facts to back it up.

"He was being nice to me because he embarrassed himself the night before when we first met." Jennifer was blushing from all the praise Peter was giving her. The handsome British engineer smiled broadly.

"How did he do that?" Radek asked.

"Well…I'm not sure I should tell you because he is a friend and it's pretty embarrassing." Jennifer was going to tell the story but suddenly felt protective of Rodney. This particular story would make its way around the base and cause him a lot of embarrassment.

"Friend? Is McKay capable of having friends?" Brendan said.

"If he could remember names, maybe," Zelenka said as he took a bite of bagel shaking his head.

"Yes, he is very capable. He's just a controlling perfectionist and takes a great deal of pride in his work. He is hard on everyone because he is harder on himself." Jennifer felt a bit of anger go through her. Everyone heard what Rodney did for them by risking his own life and was grateful, but it did not make the Head of Science any more popular. She knew he had bad traits, but they did not seem too bad to her. Maybe she had thicker skin or saw him through rose-colored glasses.

"Hhmm." Pamela raised an eyebrow and stared at her fellow American. "Quick to defend our boss. I wonder why?"

Before Jennifer could rise to Simpson's challenge, she heard Carson calling her on the radio.

As she left the mess hall, she heard a commotion. Peter Kavanagh was yelling at Warrington and Richards who had apparently bumped into him causing him to spill his coffee down the front of his uniform. When she caught their eyes, she knew Tommy said something to his buddies. _Please don't send him to the infirmary because I don't want to patch him up._

* * *

Several hours later, Jennifer was studying her data analysis from the last round of ATA treatments. It appeared the ATA treatment was not trending with the statistics. Less than thirty percent of this round took to the treatment.

"Doctor Keller to the jumper bay, immediately. Medical emergency." Carson's voice sounded in her ear.

_Jumper Bay. No!_ She took off at a run throwing her lab coat at Marie as she passed her, "Carson, what's going on?"

"Someone is injured on Major Sheppard's team. I'm just getting details." Carson signed off.

Jennifer once again felt panic grip her. Her heart was pounding hard making it difficult to breathe because everyone on that shuttle was a friend. Some friendships were stronger than others, but losing anyone of them would be hard to take. She did not know the few soldiers who died, but she had been saddened by their loss.

Arriving in the jumper bay Carson and three other doctors were waiting for the jumper to come up through the floor.

"What's the situation?" Jennifer asked. They could hear the alarm denoting an active gate below them, but no ship.

"It would appear Major Sheppard has some type of bug attached to him," Carson explained.

"Bug. As in Alien?" Jennifer tried not to be terrified. "We gotta quarantine this jumper bay, now."

As if on queue, she saw Richards and some other Marines in the corridor closing the doors. Her eyes connected with his for a second and nodded. At least they are following the procedures that Carson and Jennifer instituted as soon as they planned to go off world.

Jennifer kept glancing at her watch trying to imagine John with some bug attached to him and could not get the scenes from Alien, the movie, out of her head. _Hurry up._ "Carson, it should not have taken this long for them to come through the gate."

"Elizabeth? Control Room?" Carson tried on his radio. "No answer."

"There's gotta be a problem. Let's get down there," Jennifer said going to the door. "Sergeant Richards, please open up. No Jumper has come in."

Richards opened the door and Jennifer and Carson ran down the stairwell to the control room directly below.

"Where's my patient?" Carson said as he stepped into the control room with Jennifer on his heals. The alarm was sounding and the event horizon was visible in the gate.

"There's been a problem. Conference room," she said to the doctors.

"Oh no!" The CMO looked at his young friend. He knew she was a close friend to Sheppard, McKay and Stackhouse. _I'll need to keep an eye on her._ "Let's go."

Jennifer could not speak. She was trying to remember the papers she read many months ago and the conversations with Rodney about how the gate worked. _What could possibly have gone wrong?_

* * *

In the conference room, scientists milled around and looked at computers before the briefing began. Jennifer was in shock as they heard from Peter Grodin and Kavanagh. The jumper was wedged half in the Stargate. Stackhouse and Markham were in the event horizon and SGA-1 with an injured Sheppard was still outside the gate in the rear of the jumper. The gate would shut down in less than thirty minutes.

Doctor Weir came in to address them. "All right, you've all been briefed. We have less than half an hour. Where's Doctor Zelenka?"

"He's working up a simulation in Puddle Jumper Two. He went straight there," Kavanagh said.

"That's good," Weir replied.

"If there was time, it would be," Kavanagh said sounding annoyed.

"Let's not admit defeat just yet, Doctor. There are six people on that ship," Elizabeth responded. Kavanagh looked like he was going to protest.

"I'm just a medical doctor here, so forgive me if this is a stupid question. If they just stepped through the event horizon, wouldn't they come through the front part of the ship when the Gate shuts down?" Carson interrupted.

"The front half won't rematerialize on this side," Kavanagh said in a condescending tone to the CMO.

"The Stargate transmits matter in discrete units. The front half of the ship cannot rematerialize until the whole ship has crossed into the event horizon. The Stargate is essentially waiting for the contiguous components meaning the Jumper and everyone inside to enter completely before it can transport them," Peter explained.

Doctor Beckett looked to the smartest person he knew and raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"Peter said the gate only sends things through in one piece. When it shuts down in less than thirty minutes, it will chop the jumper in half and kill Stackhouse and Markham immediately. The others will…they'll… be killed by the vacuum of space." Jennifer choked out the last bit. _Don't think about it. Don't think about it._ There was nothing she could do to help them. The basics she got, but she could not figure out how to move the jumper or rewrite the Stargate's programming. Being useless was not something she had experience dealing with. _Gotta find a way to stay busy._

"That was a very succinct explanation, Doctor Keller, thank you," Peter said. Everyone in the room was quiet for a moment.

"What if they closed the bulkhead door?" Simpson said.

"The rear portion of the ship would remain pressurized, become a sort of lifeboat," Elizabeth said with hope in her voice.

"It would leak atmosphere like a sieve," Grodin said.

"It could buy enough time to send a second Jumper," Pamela said.

"And do what?" Kavanagh said.

Jennifer glared at him. _He is the most negative, vile person I ever had to work with. Forget it, the Marines can throw you off a balcony for all I care._

"Figure it out. Contact Jumper One and make the recommendation," Elizabeth said leaving the room.

"Jumper One, this is Atlantis," Grodin said as he pressed the button to call the jumper.

"Still here." Rodney's voice came into the room.

Jennifer took a deep breath. _Thank goodness, he's okay._ The sound of his voice lifted the grip of panic from her chest, so she could breathe again.

"We recommend closing the bulkhead door," the British engineer told him.

"Oh, good thinking. What else?" The sound of Rodney's voice made Jennifer smile. She could feel the sarcasm dripping off each word. _Obviously, Rodney already thought of that._

"We're still working on the problem. We'll get back to you. Atlantis base out," Peter closed the connection.

Jennifer turned to Carson, "We need to try to help John. Let's get back to the control room and work on his problem. We can't do anything here."

The CMO looked into the worried eyes of his young friend. He knew she and John were very close. _A little too close for comfort sometimes._ "Let's go."

* * *

"Over here, sir. This mike is open," Jimmy Tung said to Carson and Jennifer when they got to the control room to talk with SGA-1 in the back of the jumper.

"This is Doctor Beckett. How's our patient?" Carson said into the microphone. Jennifer grabbed a laptop and sat next to him. She was going to take notes from Carson's conversation. The panic was still there, but staying busy would help.

"This is Ford. Major Sheppard's conscious but the creature is still latched on to him."

"How do you feel about house calls, Doc?" Sheppard's weary voice came over the radio.

Jennifer let out a breath when she heard her friend. He did not sound like his usual self and she exchanged a concerned look with Carson.

"Would if I could, Major Sheppard, but you'll have to settle for long distance. I'm told you have something of a cling-on." Beckett cringed and glanced at Jennifer who shook her head and could not help but smile.

"That's funny. It's like the ugliest damn tick you've ever seen," John said chuckling.

"How did it attach itself? Can you describe it to me?" Carson shot off some questions and looked at Jennifer seated next to him as they waited for the answers.

"Yes sir. It's about two feet in length, including the tail. That's wrapped down under his armpit. It's got two sharp, spiny things in his neck near the major's carotid artery," Aiden said.

"I'll need more than that, son," the CMO said.

"Its forelegs, I guess you'd call them that, they're wrapped around the major's throat. I can't see any eyes. It's got a real hard shell, but there's a soft leechy part underneath." The lieutenant sounded disgusted as he described it.

Jennifer was trying to imagine what it looked like. _If it had a hard shell it was most likely to protect the soft part. They need to concentrate their attack on that._

"Major, what are your physical symptoms?" Carson asked.

"Well, first it felt like a knife in the eye. Since then I've lost all the feelings in my extremities. I can't move," John said over the radio.

"So it incapacitates first with pain, then paralysis," Jennifer said.

When her voice sounded through the jumper, Rodney looked up for a moment from what he was working on. _What a rotten birthday this is turning out to be for you._

"Jennifer, I need to be able to move around to help McKay with the mechanical problem. Markham and Stackhouse are dead if I don't," John said.

"Understood, but Rodney does work pretty well by himself," she said.

"Hey! I heard that," Rodney said causing Jennifer to smile.

"What have you tried to remove it?" Carson asked.

"I tried to cut it off. I tried to burn it off. I even tried to shoot it off with a nine mil, point blank. Not much worse I can do without killing the major along with it," Ford said.

"I believe the creature is related in some way to the Wraith," Teyla said.

"Really?" Rodney's voice asked.

"What do you mean, Teyla?" Jennifer asked. _This was an interesting idea._

"It healed itself after each attempt to remove it by sapping life from Major Sheppard, just as a Wraith would," Teyla said

"The Wraith had to evolve from something," Jennifer said.

"It's probably some sort of, uh, prehistoric cousin." Rodney finished Jennifer's thoughts from the jumper.

"Listen, Doc. The Major's getting worse. We've got to do something right now," Ford said.

Carson looked at Jennifer's notes over her shoulder. His eye caught on something. "You said the creature had an underside of exposed soft tissue, like a leech?"

"Yeah. I tried to cut into it, but the thing practically strangled him to death," Ford replied.

"Son, you don't cut leeches off. You pour salt on them," Carson said somewhat angrily. "I need you to get everything you have in the jumper. We have the manifest and will assemble the same stuff here."

Jennifer got on the radio with the infirmary to pull out the manifest of a jumper and assemble all the stuff onto a cart. They ran to the transport and got to the infirmary as quickly as they could.

"All right, I've got everything from the Jumper manifest already laid out here. What's your personal inventory?" Carson asked. Jennifer and Captain Cole had four Tac Vests with them.

"Okay, from the vests, we've got a Swiss Army knife, some chocolate, some water, matches, emergency kit. We have alcohol, iodine, painkillers..." Jennifer and Amanda pulled items out of the vests.

"What is this?" Teyla asked.

"Teyla found a portable defibrillator in the ship stores," Ford said.

"Major Sheppard would receive the same electric shock. It would likely kill him," Carson explained.

"Right," Ford replied.

"Try everything one item at a time," Carson said.

"Jumper One, this is Weir. Doctor Zelenka's come up with something," Elizabeth's voice came over the radio.

_Oh thank you, Radek. I could kiss you!_ Jennifer sagged slightly against the table.

"Zelenka. Why can I never remember that name?" Rodney could be heard.

Jennifer laughed. She was well aware of Radek's frustration with his boss' forgetfulness.

"He's positively identified the control systems on the port side of the Jumper that retract the drive pod. I'm relaying the schematics to your data pad," Grodin said.

"Thank you. Now we're getting somewhere," Rodney could be heard. "Zelenka's identified the control pathways to the engine pod, which means that's increasing my chances of fixing this from one in a million to one in a thousand, but, uh... it's something. Elizabeth?"

"Yes?" Elizabeth asked.

"I'll only have seven to nine seconds to warn you if I accidentally trigger a catastrophic overload, so ... if I tell you to raise the shield, don't hesitate," Rodney said. _I'm sorry Jennifer, not sure I'll get your friends home for your birthday. _He wished he could at least say good-bye to the woman, he considered a close friend, but this was not a private channel.

"We're aware of the risk, Rodney. Do your best," Elizabeth said.

Jennifer should be terrified, but the sound of Rodney's voice kept her hope alive. _If it comes down to Rodney saving them, I'll bet on Rodney._

"We're starting with iodine," Ford said and a few moments later he told them to "scratch iodine."

"What else have you got there?" Carson asked.

"Yes, what have you got there? Any food?" Rodney could be heard.

"You're kidding," Ford sounded angry.

"I have less than twenty minutes to save our lives, and I am teetering on the brink of a hypoglycemic reaction, so..." McKay could be heard.

"Just give it to him, Aiden. He _is_ hypoglycemic," Jennifer jumped in. _Can't have Rodney losing it._

"Thank you," Rodney said.

Jennifer was not sure if Rodney was talking to her or Aiden. Listening to her friends on the other side of the galaxy was surreal. Her desire to be with them was very strong. _Even if they're facing imminent death._

"Here," Teyla said.

"We're going to try alcohol now," Ford said.

"Place a few drops on the soft tissue to see how it reacts," Carson said.

"No reaction to alcohol," Aiden said sounding disappointed.

"Right. What next?" He looked at Jennifer who glanced at her watch only to quickly take it off and shove it in her pocket.

"Did the doctor not say to pour salt on the creature?" Teyla said.

"I think that was a metaphor. But it doesn't matter, just try everything," Rodney said with a full mouth.

"Water. Give me water," Ford said.

"Sir? Sir. Sir, are you all right? Sir? Major?" Aiden can be heard asking but then is drown out by the sound of Sheppard screaming.

Jennifer clutched Carson's arm and closed her eyes. _Useless. We are totally useless._

"Sir, are you all right? Sir? Major? Major? What's happening?" Ford yells.

"What's happening?" Elizabeth yelled.

"It could have reacted to either the salt or the water," Aiden explained.

"Or the combination of both," Jennifer said as she let go of Carson's arm.

"Did it loosen its hold on Major Sheppard?" Carson asked.

"Negative," Ford said sounding disgusted.

"If anything, it dug in more," Teyla added.

"Please, don't do that again," Sheppard said weakly.

"I won't, sir. I'm sorry," Ford said.

"Most likely a primitive defensive reflex to salt water," Carson said and Jennifer nodded in agreement with his assessment.

"Carson, we have to do something. That thing is going to kill him if it feels threatened again," Jennifer said quietly to Carson pulling him away from the microphone. They moved to the corner of the room to discuss options.

"It looks like salt water hurts it, but it will kill John, too." Jennifer's mind was racing. Running through the list of what was in the jumper, her mind kept going back to the defibrillator. If only they could modify it, so it would not kill John.

"If this thing is like a Wraith, it will drain his life before it will drop off," the CMO said to his young friend. "I feel like we are missing something really important."

"I know," Jennifer said. Vaguely, she heard the conversation continuing over the PA. Apparently, the shuttle went further into the gate, so it would be exposed to the vacuum of space when the gate shut down. _Calm down, Rodney. You'll make this work. You are not going to let John and the others die. That's it!_

"The defibrillator…" Jennifer began the same time as John suggested the same thing.

"You two may be onto something," Carson said.

"No-no. You said that might kill him," Ford said.

"That's the idea," Sheppard said through clenched teeth.

"I-I don't understand,"

"Teyla. You said this creature is like a Wraith," Carson said.

"Yes," the Athosian leader replied.

"Then how do you think it would respond if, God forbid, Major Sheppard were to die right now, then?" The CMO asked.

"It would stop feeding!" Teyla cried.

"Exactly, just like a Wraith would," Jennifer jumped in because she could not stay silent much longer.

"How is that an idea?" Elizabeth asked over the radio.

"We're suggesting that we fool the creature into thinking its prey is dead by stopping the major's heart. If we're right, it should let him go," Carson said looking at Jennifer for her agreement.

"When the thing lets go, we give him another jolt," Aiden said.

"You can give it a try. If it doesn't work, send him through the event horizon. He'll keep there as good as a deep freeze," Carson responded.

"John, are you sure you want to do this?" Elizabeth asked.

"I want this damn thing off me," John growled.

"Be prepared for a Code Blue in the Jumper Bay," Carson said to Jennifer and she took off at a run with Amanda to get into biohazard suits because of the bug. Jennifer had not used a defibrillator on anyone in a long time, so she mentally ran through what to do in her head. Getting suited up, gathering two other physicians and getting the supplies ate up a lot of time. _Don't think. Rodney can do it._

* * *

She found herself standing in an empty jumper bay once again with three other people; only this time they were in containment suits and Carson was not there, yet. Jennifer purposely left her watch in her pocket so she did not know the time. _All she could do is pray and try to will her thoughts across the galaxy to the man that had come to mean so much to her in a short time. He already faced death and came out on top; please don't die on my birthday. _

"Jennifer, you've got incoming. Ford has been exposed to space and Sheppard's in cardiac arrest. I'm on my way," Carson yelled into the radio built into her suit. It had a separate frequency so she could not hear what had been going on.

"Rodney did it?" She yelled back the excitement in her voice.

"Yes." Carson could be heard running while he spoke.

The jumper moved at what seemed like a snails pace before it set down in front of them. The rear hatch was open and Ford was lying on the deck. Everyone else was crammed in the forward section.

"Lydia," Jennifer called to a British doctor, "Get that oxygen on Ford. Mark and Tam, help me with Sheppard."

Carson came running in just as Jennifer and the others stepped into the jumper. The young American physician was charging the defibrillator while Doctor Tammara Beck and Doctor Mark Schoffield made room for Carson to get inside. Jennifer handed Carson the defibrillator to use on Sheppard, who is lying on the floor in the cockpit. She held the airbag while Beckett shocked John. They checked the monitor to see only a flat line.

"Again!" The CMO shouted. He shocked John again. Jennifer started pumping air into him. _Come on, Sheppard. Don't **you** die on my birthday?_

Rodney and Elizabeth looked into the cockpit where Carson, Jennifer and two doctors continued to work on Sheppard. Putting on a stethoscope, Carson checked John's heart because the monitor showed three small heartbeats, then flat lined again.

"Well done, Rodney," Elizabeth said.

"We'll see," Rodney said as Jennifer glanced at him. The medical team had their helmets off because the bug had been sucked into space, so he could see her eyes clearly. They were watery and full of concern.

"We've got a pulse," Carson said as the monitor began to beep regularly.

Jennifer exhaled and sat back a bit. After giving Rodney a weak smile, she looked at Markham and Stackhouse. Both men still were in shock when they found out what happened.

"Getting stronger! He should recover." Carson and Jennifer both breathed a sigh of relieve. Jennifer got up so they could transport John to the infirmary.

Rodney sighed in relief as Elizabeth sunk onto the bench. The scientist wandered aimlessly out of the back of the Jumper, then turned and walked back in looking at Jennifer as he leaned against the wall. Their eyes met and held for a moment, each thankful to see the other again.

* * *

Jennifer was dead on her feet and could not wait to crash in her bed. _This was the worst birthday ever._ She almost lost six friends. As she walked into John's room to say good night, he was talking with his team and Elizabeth, so she paused not wanting to intrude.

"I was going to say, um..." John paused, "take care of each other."

"That's nice," Elizabeth said.

"Yep," said John who noticed Jennifer at the door.

"And, uh, indeed, we did," Rodney said smirking. He followed John's eyes to Jennifer and the smirk left his face replaced by that constant rage he felt whenever the two of them were together. _She is not spending what's left of her birthday in here with you._

"Hey, where's my meal? You hand delivered one to McKay when he almost died. I really did die." John put on his best wounded-boy look. It would melt the heart of most women, but Jennifer's heart already belonged to someone else.

"Rodney was a hero. You just got a bug stuck on your neck." Jennifer said with a straight face and deadpan delivery.

Everyone laughed with Rodney laughing a little louder, which John noticed. _Feeling cocky tonight, hey McKay. Watch this. _"I'm getting this tingling sensation. Do you think this thing injected me with something? I feel a little stiff. Do you think you could take a look, Doc?"

"Where does it hurt?" Jennifer moved closer to the bed. She really wanted to go, but John was her friend and she did not want anything else to happen to him.

"I'd rather not say in front of them," John leaned close to her and said in a low voice, but still loud enough for them to hear.

The look on Rodney's face made it worthwhile for John. He was quite certain the physicist was going to pop a vein in his neck or grind his teeth down. His teammate actually moved closer to the bed, crossing his arms.

"I'm sure Jennifer can get someone to help you with your _problem_," Rodney spat. "She's been as much a part of this as the rest of us and deserves the evening off."

John could barely contain his smile. "Jennifer, are you going to leave me here alone?"

Rodney wanted to leave with Jennifer and was trying to think of something to say or do to make it happen. Lucky for him Peter Kavanagh provided assistance.

Carson came rushing through the room grabbing a first aid kit.

"Carson, what's happened now?" Jennifer asked as Rodney and John looked on.

"Doctor Kavanagh is injured in an auxiliary science lab. Not sure the details just got a call from Sergeant Richards." Carson said.

"Oh no. I told those guys…" Jennifer felt her heart drop. "What did they do?"

She took off out the door leaving the three men in shock.

"What's that all about?" John asked. Without answering John, the physicist bolted out the door followed by Carson.

* * *

Jennifer's heart was in her throat. _Could this day get any worse_? Because Jennifer ran in the morning with the soldiers, she was faster than her out-of-shape best friends. Calling the control room, she found out the location of the lab and headed that way.

"What did you do?" She screamed at Stackhouse, Mace, Warrington, Markham and Richards. "Gunny, what are you doing here?"

"Calm down Jennifer. We did not hurt him. We just came to talk to him and he passed out," Richards said calmly.

"Yeah, I guess we looked intimidating and caused him to faint," the baby-faced Markham said laughing.

Jennifer looked at them all and was concerned suddenly for the safety of Peter Kavanagh. Not because she cared about him, but because her friends would get in trouble. She found herself moving into the room and putting herself between her friends and the jerk.

"Look at what you guys are making me do. I have to protect this jerk from all of you." Jennifer crossed her arms and glared at them.

Carson and Rodney arrived slightly out of breath to see her standing between a bunch of Marines in off-duty clothes and Kavanagh who was lying on his back on the floor.

"What happened to him?" Carson asked.

"They said he passed out, but I'm not sure I believe them." Jennifer looked at the Marines.

"What's this about?" Rodney asked as he moved into the room. "Jennifer, why are you protecting Kavanagh? I didn't think you were friends."

"Friends! She just slapped him yesterday, Doctor McKay," Stackhouse said earning a glare from Jennifer. "They are _not_ friends."

"You slapped him?" Rodney could not believe it. _Jennifer? His sweet Jennifer slapped Kavanagh._ A sudden rage filled him. Anyone who upset this wonderful, kind woman to the point of physical violence deserved whatever harm these soldiers were going to give him. _I'll even help hold him down._

"Jennifer, love, come over here," Carson's voice was unlike anything Jennifer ever heard coming out of her mentor, so she complied.

"Why don't you go get out of your uniform and grab some dinner? It's been a long day. I'll take care of Doctor Kavanagh," Carson said.

"Carson. They're going to get in trouble and hurt him. No matter what he's…"

"Go now, love." Carson was smiling a tight smile that did not reach his eyes. He seemed like he was holding something back.

"I mean it guys," she said as she turned to face them all. "Promise me you won't physically harm Doctor Kavanagh. I don't want anyone in trouble with Weir, Sheppard or Bates."

"Jennifer," Rodney said walking to her, "I'll catch up with you later."

She looked up at him and noticed how handsome he was in a light blue shirt and khaki pants. Her knees felt a little weak at the thought that he was meeting her later. "Okay, but…"

"As his supervisor, I assure you that I won't let the Marines lay a hand on Kavanagh."

"Okay, but if I don't see you in half an hour, I'm coming back with Bates," she said and left.

"Someone want to explain why the nicest person here slapped Kavanagh?" McKay addressed the Marines and Richards in particular.

"I don't know all the details, Doctor McKay, but I was waiting for my physical and heard someone getting slapped. Then I found Kavanagh yelling at Jennifer," Stackhouse explained jerking a thumb at the still unconscious man behind him. "I told him to back off and he said he was going to go to Beckett, I mean you Doctor Beckett, and Doctor Weir to complain that she hit him. Jennifer said she'd go to Rodney, I mean you, sir, and tell him, I mean you, what Kavanagh said."

Hearing his name, Peter pushed himself into a sitting position. Glancing at everyone around him including Doctor Beckett and his boss, he quickly pulled himself to his feet. "Thank goodness you two are here. These guys are out of control. They were going to kill me."

"I doubt they were going to kill you," Rodney said in a calm voice. His insides were roiling at the young sergeant's words. _Jennifer was so upset she threatened to come to me with what he said. _The head of science stepped back to the doorway and swiped his hand over the sensor shutting the door. Kavanagh had a look of concern cross his arrogant face.

"Don't worry, Kavanagh, we won't hurt you, _now_." Rodney walked toward his subordinate.

Peter Kavanagh might be arrogant and self-centered, but he was not a total idiot. The tone of his superior's voice, the set of his eyes and his stance told the conceited man that he would be in more trouble than he could ever imagine if he did not keep quiet.

"I don't know what you said to Jennifer and you better hope I never do." Rodney spoke with a steady tone even though his temperament was better suited to yelling and screaming. He did not want Kavanagh to miss anything he had to say. "This is the only warning you are going to get. There is not a man in this room who won't throw your sorry ass off the highest tower on Atlantis if you ever speak to or even think about Doctor Keller, again. Is that clear?"

Kavanagh wanted to say something smug. He wanted to knock his boss on his ass, but something in Rodney's eyes told him he would not even get his fist formed before he would be back on the floor. Realizing that everyone on this expedition was nuts except him caused his sense of self-preservation to kick in. He nodded and swallowed audibly. _She's not worth it anyways, little know-it-all blond. Just like all the other loser women who don't see how great I am._

Rodney turned to look specifically at Sergeant Richards. The older sergeant nodded knowing now that Doctor McKay was an ally.

As the physicist opened the door and turned to leave, a motion from his right caused him to turn in time to see Carson slug Kavanagh sending the man into the wall with blood spurting from his nose. "What the…"

"_I_ didn't promise I wouldn't hurt him. I only said I'd _take care_ of him and now I will." Carson picked up the first aid kit and walked over to the engineer who slid down the wall to sit on the floor with blood flowing down his face. The sound of laughter from the Marines echoed down the corridor. Atlantis's head of research laughed as well. Now time to get Jennifer for her birthday surprise.

* * *

Rodney found Jennifer waiting near the mess hall and could not hold in his smile. The excitement he felt was unusual because he was never one to give other people gifts. _Why am I excited?_

"You're in a good mood for almost dying a few hours ago. Again." Jennifer smiled at him. "What did you do to Kavanagh?"

"I didn't do anything," the physicist could not hold in his chuckle at the image of Carson Beckett flattening the much bigger engineer.

"Rodney?" Jennifer was suddenly standing right in front of him with her hands on her hips and a look his mother used to give him when he had almost blown up the kitchen with a chemistry kit.

"I swear," he could not help but stir the pot a little so he added, "ask your boss about that one."

"What?" The young physician said to his back as he walked over to get a tray.

* * *

After dinner, Rodney was ready to spring his surprise. "Jennifer, there's something I want to show you."

"Sure," Jennifer said as she smiled at her _date_. There was no way she could _not_ think of this as a date. Rodney made it very clear earlier that he wanted to spend time with her. Sitting with her and his staff for dinner was not something he would normally do; the arrogant physicist even thanked them for saving him _and_ remembered Radek's name for once. _You do not do things like that unless you're on a date. _

Rodney led Jennifer to a transporter and hit the location of his surprise. Once they stepped out of the transporter at the top of one of the highest towers on the north-side of the city, he heard Jennifer gasp.

"Is something wrong?" He asked.

"This is really high," she said with slight panic in her voice.

"I know, but it's the best place to star gaze. Just don't look down or get near the railing." _Looks like she doesn't like heights either. Something else we have in common._

"Star gaze?" Jennifer asked looking at Rodney with raised eyebrows. _What is this all about?_

"It's hard to get a present in the Pegasus galaxy for someone's twenty-sixth birthday, so I had to improvise," Rodney said turning to a small table to pick up a package. He handed it to her. "Happy birthday, Jennifer."

_Rodney remembered my birthday. And got me a gift._ Recovering from her shock, she reached out to take the gift, which was wrapped in Athosian cloth with a piece of string tied at the top. Looking up into Rodney's face, she saw concern in his eyes. Smiling, she managed to find her voice. "I can't believe you remembered." Inside the package was a baggie of about a dozen peanut butter cookies.

"I know they're your favorite and I believe those are the last of them. I've had them hidden in a freezer for about a week. I think they're still good. At least I hope so. I'd hate you to get sick on your birthday." Rodney was starting to talk fast and his eyes were glancing around a lot.

"Thank you, Rodney. Today was going to be the worse birthday ever with… I mean… I had so many friends on that jumper." She could not go on without getting choked up. During the ordeal she found a way to push the fear aside by staying busy, but now it threatened to overwhelm her. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the feelings aside for a little while longer. _I will not ruin this by crying._ "This is really nice. It will be hard for me to top peanut butter cookies when your birthday gets here."

"Don't worry about it." The thought that Jennifer might do something for his birthday sent a strange feeling through him. "I've got something else too. It's not much, but I remembered a story you told me when we were at your house."

Curious, Jennifer followed Rodney around the corner of the balcony and saw a large Celestron telescope. Since she was little, she and her dad would star gaze in the backyard. She looked at a telescope like this one when she was younger, but it cost too much money for her father to buy. Instead, she worked hard to get a small one that did not see much further than the end of their street. As she looked at the handsome man next to her, she remembered telling him that story. Tears welled up in her eyes. _Rodney remembered._

"As the head of science and research and an astrophysicist, I got a few indulgences on this expedition. Selecting the telescopes was one of them. I… I hope you like it. I can't really _give_ it to you, but you can come and use it whenever you'd like," he spoke nervously. Fear was evident in his eyes. _Does she like it? She looks sad. This is why I never give gifts. If she hates it, what do I do then?_

"Oh, Rodney, this is the best birthday present ever," she said throwing her arms around him.

Rodney McKay promised himself that if Jennifer should ever throw her arms around him again, he would not just stand there like an idiot. His mind was in idiot-mode as the beautiful woman slid her arms around his waist and pressed her head into his shoulder. Luckily, his body was on top of things this time and his arms slid around her to hold her tight. Once his brain got back online, he realized he did not want to crush her. Loosening his arms a bit, he closed his eyes and tried to memorize every sensory input. The smell of her flowery shampoo, the sound of her breathing close to his ear, the pounding of his own heart and the feel of her body held against his. She fit so perfectly in his arms that he never wanted it to end. _This memory will be keeping me company for many nights to come._

Jennifer could not believe Rodney was hugging her. The last time she hugged him, he did not respond. This time, he held her a little too tight at first, but she was not complaining. The feel of his body touching hers, the smell that was uniquely _his_ and the sound of his heart pounding caused her knees to weaken and her blood pressure to increase.

They both seemed to realize the hug was going on longer than was proper between two friends. Pulling away at the same time, they smiled shyly at each other.

"You really like it?" Rodney was trying to recover some of the blood that left his brain for his lower regions.

"Absolutely. This is now the best birthday, I've ever had."

Jennifer was beaming, which melted Rodney's heart. "I found a couple of comets already. Gotta rub that in Brendan's face."

She could not keep from laughing. "I've never seen a comet through a telescope before."

"Well, there is a small one here. I'm thinking that one is Keller and the bigger one is McKay," he said as he lined up the telescope to show Jennifer _her_ comet.

"I can live with that since your ego is huge," Jennifer said and started giggling.

"You're funny, you know." Rodney stepped back from the telescope.

"Yes, I know." Jennifer stepped up to look at the comet. "You realize that giving me a comet for my birthday is going to make it impossible for you to top next year."

_She wants me around for her next birthday?_ The astrophysicist looked at the beautiful woman looking through the telescope and swore that he would be with her for as many birthdays as she let him attend. "I am a genius. I'm sure I'll think of something."

TBC-Suspicion

* * *

**A/N: I did not plan this to be so long, but I just can't keep these two apart. They really do have a mind of their own and had to get in one swing at Kavanagh for Elisad263. Hopefully, not who you expected. **


	9. Suspicion

**MGM owns all character. Some dialogue taken from GateWorld.**

**Thanks for the reviews and to scr1tno and HalCooper for beta work.**

* * *

Jennifer Keller was always on duty in the infirmary when Major Sheppard's gate team was out on a mission. There were two reasons for this; one was to keep busy, so she did not think about her friends being in danger and the other was because all the doctors on the expedition complained to Carson that they did not want to treat Rodney McKay unless he was unconscious. Jennifer and Carson were used to Rodney being obnoxious and comparing their profession to shamanism and voodoo, but the other medical professionals could not forgive the insults. Every time Jennifer thought about Rodney, she had to smile. _For someone who hates doctors and the medical profession, he was suddenly in the infirmary a lot over the last two months._ He had aches, sprains, strains, migraines and even a splinter. The young doctor tried to tell him there was no wood on Atlantis but she ended up holding his hand for at least ten minutes looking for a splinter that did not exist. A wave of warmth spread through her as she thought about holding his hand.

"Medical emergency team to the gate room," said Jimmy Tung's voice over the PA. A cold fear gripped Jennifer's heart as she jumped up from her desk rushed toward the Gateroom.

"What do you have for us, Jimmy?" She paused with Marie waiting to see if they needed a stretcher.

"Doctor McKay was hit by a stunner blast once he got through the gate. He's unconscious, but Sheppard says he has a pulse."

"Understood. We need a stretcher," she said to Marie and turned to run up the corridor. Running was frowned upon in the medical profession. _You cannot help the patient if you get yourself injured_ came the voice of her first responder instructor. In this case, Jennifer did not care. _Rodney was injured, so nothing else matters._

Once again, she arrived in the Gateroom to see Rodney lying on the floor with his team and a lot of Marines around him. Sergeant Richards had a concerned look on his face as he caught her eye. She dropped down next to Rodney while the others brought in the stretcher. Reaching to feel his pulse, her hands were shaking._ I have to get a grip. Rodney is really accident-prone and you agreed to be his physician. _

"We need to get him back under a scanner," Jennifer said as she directed the other doctors and nurses to lift him onto the stretcher. She saw the concern on the faces of his teammates. Mentally running through all the effects of getting stunned, she had a full battery of tests lined up to run on him once they got to the lab.

About an hour later, Rodney regained consciousness in an infirmary bed with his mouth slightly ajar. Major Sheppard and Doctor Beckett stood at his bedside.

"How you feeling?" John asked the scientist.

"I ca' fee' anythi... I ... I ca' talk!" Rodney could not move his mouth to speak. _What's going on? _His eyes stared at a spot on the ceiling and swung around to see what was going on, but the inability to move his head greatly limited his range. _Where was Jennifer?_

As if on queue, Jennifer came in with her laptop looking over the scan results.

"You can't talk, either!" Sheppard said with a smirk on his face as he looked at Jennifer, who glared at him.

" 'at's wha' I said!" Rodney tried to say.

"Your body experienced a full overload to its sensory and motor nervous system," Carson said as he looked at the laptop Jennifer handed him.

"Wha'?" Rodney tried to speak again.

"Rodney, you took a Wraith stunner directly to your head," Jennifer explained in a calm voice. She moved close to him so he could see her and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"A' I paraly'ed?" Rodney asked.

"The paralysis is only temporary, Rodney. You'll be back to normal in a few hours I can assure you." The physician saw the fear in his eyes and rubbed her hand up and down his arm before realizing he could not feel it.

"Bloody good thing that Wraith weapon is only designed to incapacitate or he'd be dead," Carson said to Sheppard while reviewing Jennifer's data. "It is quite fascinating how they have it tuned to exactly the right wavelength as…"

"Wha'?" Rodney's eyes widened and he sought out Jennifer's face. Her voice was like a lifeline to him as was her smile.

"Carson!" She hissed. Knowing Carson loved to tease Rodney did not make her any less angry with him. "_My_ patient needs some quiet right now. Why don't you and the major run along? I'll catch up with you later."

John and Carson exchanged perplexed glances. Jennifer seemed extremely upset at them for teasing Rodney, but Sheppard had come to realize that when she was in _doctor mode_ she was very professional.

Jennifer turned back to Rodney. "I'm going off duty, so I'll have time to sit with you for a while." Grabbing her laptop from the foot of the bed where Carson left it, she pulled a chair up to the bed and sat where he could see her.

"Would you like some music, a movie or audio book?" Jennifer asked Rodney with a smile.

" 'ovie," Rodney tried to get out.

"I think you fell asleep during the Harry Potter movie we were watching." Jennifer smiled and set up the computer so he could look at it. She left for a few minutes to let the incoming physician know about the patients.

Rodney stared at the movie in front of him. Since he and Jennifer were responsible for bringing the movies, they got to pick the ones everybody else watched for movie night. _They brought the movies._ If he could smile, he would. The thought of him and Jennifer doing _something_ together always made him feel warm all over. He had no idea why, but he liked the feeling. As thoughts of Jennifer and he attending an academy for gifted kids drifted through his mind, the tired man fell asleep.

* * *

On the East Pier, an unusual sight greeted the angry astrophysicist as he limped his way from the transporter to find his team and _his_ doctor. Carson and Jennifer told him repeatedly that she was _technically_ not _his _doctor, but he wanted no part of the other hacks in the infirmary. He did not care about their specialties, research, medical school grades or even what their names were. Jennifer was a genius, which made her the _best_ and he deserved the _best_ taking care of him.

Over the last couple of months, various members of the expedition had been introducing Earth sports to the Athosians. First, Peter Grodin and Isabelle Dumais introduced football or soccer as the Americans call it. The next week, John Sheppard tried unsuccessfully to introduce American football. Now, someone had the bright idea to try softball. _It was amazing that people brought all these personal sports items. _

The Athosians were at bat with John coaching them against scientists and soldiers as the opposing team. Rodney recognized several of his staff including Hays, Peterson, Grodin and Miko, who was pitching to… _Jennifer? What was she doing playing for the Athosians and why did she leave before I woke up?_ It was the latter question that he wanted answered immediately.

Jennifer was not going to play; only going to coach the Athosians, but Stackhouse, Markham, Richards and the scientists teased her enough to make her play at the end. Teyla was an excellent hitter and stood at third base with Jinto on first. The Atlanteans, as they called themselves were up by two runs.

It had been many years since Jennifer stepped onto a softball field. Her father played in a league and she kept score while doing her homework when she was little, but she never played on a team. She did help her father practice his pitching by batting for him.

"Come on Keller, put it in the ocean behind me." Tommy Stackhouse laughed from center field.

"I say everybody move way in," Scott Peterson yelled from right field as he moved closer to the infielders, Yamamoto, Smith, Richards and Markham at short stop. Chuck was in left field and yelling for her to hit it to him. It was obvious that no one thought she was capable of hitting the ball very far with her petite frame. Deciding to ignore the men and focus on Miko, who was an excellent pitcher, she took her stance and waited for the pitch.

"Hey, McKay," John called as he stood with the other Athosians and Ford watching Jennifer prepare for Miko's pitch. "Didn't think softball was your thing?"

"Hey, how are you feeling, Doctor McKay?" Aiden asked.

"I hate sports except hockey, of course, and I'm obviously not fine if I'm still limping, Ford," he snarked at them. "I was hoping to see my physician when I woke up, but Carson said she was _playing_ with you guys."

"It was Jennifer's idea to introduce softball. She thought it might allow them to release a little pent-up energy. Football was a little too complicated and I despise soccer, so I didn't talk it up too much. Softball is a good common ground," John said as he saw Jennifer miss the first pitch. "Don't worry Keller. Just wait for it!"

"Just reeling 'em in, Sheppard," she called back sticking her tongue out at the men in the field, who came in closer. _If I could hit it out there, Teyla will definitely score and Kanaan is up next._

Rodney was jealous of any time Jennifer spent with other people. These irrational thoughts drove him nuts and kept him awake at night; along with the feel of her in his arms two months ago and the feel of her touching him during his many trips to the infirmary. Basically anything related to Jennifer kept him from sleeping. To counteract it, he threw himself into his work in the hopes he would pass out each night from exhaustion.

He awoke earlier in the afternoon and saw Jennifer sitting next to the bed reading from another laptop, so she could leave the movie playing for him. Rodney fell back to sleep with a smile and when he finally woke up and was able to move, she was gone. The angry scientist yelled at the nurse who came in and then at Carson. They had not done anything wrong other than _not_ being Jennifer. _This is crazy. Why do I feel this way? I know I haven't had many friends, but I've had a few… when I was younger and I never remember feeling jealous when we were with others._

Jennifer knew Miko was going to throw a similar pitch to the last one she missed. _I just need to drop it behind Tommy or Peterson and Teyla will be able to score. _As she swung as hard as she could, the bat and ball connected sending the ball deep into center field and off the edge of the pier. Screams of happiness and moans of defeat filled the air. Sheppard screamed for Teyla and Jinto to run the bases as he ran out to home plate. Jennifer had never hit a ball so far in her life, but was not going to let anyone know that. The grin on her face really did stretch from ear-to-ear and seeing Rodney standing on the edge of the Athosians with a clapping and screaming Ford caused her to smile more and wave. _He doesn't look happy, but at least he's on his feet._

Rodney watched Jennifer hit a home run and tag the bases to the cheers of the Athosians. He was proud of her for surprising the soldiers with her ability at bat, but the way Sheppard was acting pissed him off. As soon as Jennifer tagged home plate, John had lifted her high in the air spinning her around. It was more than the physicist could take. He found himself hurrying as fast as he could with pins-and-needles shooting through his left leg to… He did not know what he was going to do, but he would not let another man touch her. _Especially after that hug on her birthday._

"Sheppard. Sheppard…" _Put her down_ is what he wanted to yell, but realized it would sound stupid.

"And you didn't want to play. You're a softball hustler," John said laughing as he set Jennifer down. Ford was the next one to give her a big hug.

"Hey Chuck, you better have that chocolate waiting for me in the mess hall tonight," Ford called to the Canadian technician. He and the others were shaking their heads as they walked in from the _field_.

"I knew we should not have underestimated you, Doctor Keller," Sergeant Richards said. Jennifer could not stop smiling and laughing.

"You planned that! You're a devious, sneaky, little…" Peterson began only to stop as soon as Richards, Stackhouse and the other soldiers surrounded him. All laughter stopped. "Come on. I was joking. I love Jennifer."

"Don't worry about them, Peterson. They are all bark. Now, Carson, he's got a bite or a right hook, so I hear." Jennifer saw all eyes suddenly turn to look at her.

"How did you find out about that?" Stackhouse asked.

"I know everything," Jennifer smiled.

"Uh, Jennifer, um, Doctor Keller, could I have a minute?" Rodney stammered. She looked really pretty in a t-shirt, jeans and baseball cap with her radiant smile. It was difficult to remember that he came here because he was furious with her.

"Sure, Rodney," Jennifer said walking toward her friend who stayed behind the celebratory crowd. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"No thanks to you. I had to be discharged by Carson." Rodney suddenly remembered his anger at waking up alone.

"I knew you were going to be fine and didn't want to spend my entire afternoon inside. I already missed most of the game."

"How did you know I was okay? I could have still been paralyzed." Rodney crossed his arms and glared at her.

"Because I know everything," she said with hands on her hips. _It is so easy to get him riled and I love doing it._

"Ha Ha. Seriously, I could have had complications. I have a lot of existing medical conditions," Rodney said continuing to stare at her.

She cocked an eyebrow and stared right back into his intense blue eyes. "All right. I'll let you know my medical secret test for paralysis." She motioned for him to follow her even further away from the crowd.

Rodney had no idea what Jennifer was going to say to him, but he followed her nonetheless. The realization that he would follow her anywhere startled him.

"I used a special test to ensure you were no longer paralyzed while you were asleep." She stopped and looked up at his handsome face noticing that his insatiable curiosity had been piqued.

"Are you going to tell me or are you making it up?" Rodney asked getting annoyed at her.

"I tickled your feet," Jennifer said and almost lost her composure. The desire to double over laughing was very strong.

"What?" Rodney dropped his arms to his side.

"There is actually a real test to make sure people can feel by stroking the bottom of their feet to get a response. Since you responded, I knew you were no longer paralyzed. I also found out you are very ticklish," she said grinning once again from ear to ear.

Before Rodney could do more than stare dumbfounded at her, his radio went off. Elizabeth wanted him to report to the conference room immediately. "Gotta go. You're lucky I'm fine or… or…"

"Or you'll have me stripped of my medical license?" She smiled and then got serious. "Rodney, you should know by now that I would _never_ leave you if you were seriously injured or sick?"

The intensity in her brown eyes and the tone of her voice told him there was something more she was saying, but he had no idea what it could be. "Yes, but… well… I…"

"McKay!" John yelled. Elizabeth just called him to report to the conference room as well. It looked like he and Jennifer were having a bit of a serious discussion. _Can't let that happen._ The major was well aware that his teammate had a big crush on the young doctor and loved to drive him crazy about it. John was not sure if Jennifer thought of McKay as more than a friend, though. They were close, but so were she and Carson. _Not to mention Jennifer is a friendly, sweet person, so she could not possibly want to be involved with an emotionally constipated man like Rodney._

* * *

"No gate travel. Restricted access to most of the base," Isabelle was saying as Jennifer sat down in the mess hall for dinner that evening.

"Hi, Doctor Keller. I heard you showed up the soldiers and Miko today at softball," Brendan Gaul said as she sat next to him.

"I don't play softball, so it was a lucky hit," she replied smiling at the nervous man. It was obvious he got flustered when she was around and it was sweet. "What are you talking about Isabelle?"

"You have not heard?" The engineer replied in her familiar French accent.

"No. I've been wrapping up some experiments with Radek regarding the Ancient gene and jumper interfaces." Jennifer looked at the scientists around her and then noticed there were very few Marines in the mess hall. "What's going on?"

"Access to the labs, infirmary, control tower and power generation areas have been restricted to only those who need access," Ben Abrams said.

"Why?" Jennifer asked before taking a bite of her food.

"Well, five out of the last nine missions of Sheppard's team ended up with Wraith attacks including the one that injured Doctor McKay," Isabelle said.

Jennifer thought about that number and could not believe it. _It sounded like they were walking into a trap each time._ "What does that have to do with locking down the base?"

"They think there is a spy here," Brendan said.

Jennifer and the scientists looked at each other. "A spy. That's ridiculous. If there was a spy and they had access to the Stargate, they could just call the Wraith here. I'm sure the destruction of Atlantis, even though the Ancients are gone, would be worth something to them."

"The numbers don't lie, Jennifer," Hays added. "Five out of nine. That is not random."

"I agree, but…" Jennifer's radio went off. "This is Doctor Keller, go ahead."

Kanaan was the only Athosian besides Teyla to keep a radio. They discovered his sister Adira was pregnant recently and not having an easy pregnancy, so Jennifer requisitioned one for him. The child's father was killed when Athos was attacked by the Wraith, so her brother was taking care of her. "Adira is complaining of pain and I cannot bring her to the infirmary."

"What! Where are you?" Jennifer stood up from the table shouting into her headset causing everyone in the mess hall to turn and look at the young doctor.

"We are in the living quarters. The soldier will not let us pass to the infirmary," Kanaan explained.

"Who is it?" Jennifer said, quickly walking out of the mess hall.

"I am not certain." Kanaan replied.

"Don't worry about it," she said and then clicked a different channel, "John!"

"Yes," came the voice of the major.

"One of my Athosian patients cannot get to the infirmary. What the hell is going on?" Jennifer headed to the infirmary, in case she needed to get a medical kit to visit the Athosian in her quarters.

"I don't like it either, but we have restricted certain areas of the base…" John said.

"I don't care what you like, _Major_. I have a pregnant Athosian woman who needs to have access to the infirmary whenever she needs it. Make it happen!" Jennifer was livid._ There was no way Adira, who had not been off world since she arrived, posed any threat to them. None of the Athosians did. Something else was obviously going on. _If she were not so concerned about the Athosians, she would get together with Rodney and try to sort it out.

* * *

John Sheppard understood Jennifer's anger completely and headed off to talk to Elizabeth, who was going to start interviewing the Athosians. _Something she should have done a long time ago._

"Elizabeth," John said to get her attention. She was hunched over folders in the conference room waiting for Sergeant Bates and the stenographer to get set up.

"Yes, Major," she said with a tired look on her face. The interviews had not started yet, but she already looked drained.

"Doctor Keller is quite upset that one of her Athosian patients cannot get to the infirmary. Apparently the woman is pregnant and needs access quite regularly."

"Of all the staff, somehow I knew this would upset Doctor Keller the most. Sometimes I worry that she is too _nice_ to be here," Elizabeth sighed. She had great admiration for the young woman. Her attention to detail in her work and the care she provides her patients was far above average. The way she attacked any job before her won her the respect of all the departments.

"I know what you mean. I think that's why Carson has not sent her off world, yet. He's afraid something will happen to her." John sat next to his boss. "I got a hunch that she's a lot tougher than she looks, though."

"Tell Doctor Keller that I am sorry. Until I can sort out the security of the entire base, the restrictions will have to stand. I will allow Athosians access with an escort. I hope that will smooth things over," Weir said looking at Sheppard. _I know they are pretty close, so I'll let him deal with it and stay out of that fight._

"Fine. I'll let the Marines who are guarding the infirmary know that Athosians can enter with a physician or Marine escort." John hated to face Jennifer, but this was the best he could offer.

* * *

The next few days flew by quickly for Jennifer. Adira had some complications from the pregnancy and had to stay in the infirmary where Jennifer barely left her side. The physician avoided being in the corridors where all the extra Marines reminded her constantly about the restrictions to the Athosians. She saw no one outside of the medical staff except John and Rodney.

"I have turkey or ham, which do you want?" The physicist asked his lunch companion in her office.

"I don't really care. It won't be much longer and they'll be gone, too." Jennifer could not remember being this upset about the treatment of other people. _You were always outraged from your isolated little world, but now you are in the middle of injustice and can do nothing about it._

"You know I like MREs, so I won't be too upset." Rodney grabbed the turkey because he knew Jennifer preferred the ham. "Oh, I opened the top of the tower today."

"You what?" Jennifer was pulled out of her thoughts by his nonchalant comment.

"There was a code I discovered that opened the roof of the tower. Sheppard and Ford are taking the jumper out to explore the planet."

"That's incredible," she said and could not hold back a slight smile.

The smile that graced Jennifer's mouth was like food to a starving man. She had not smiled in days since the security lock-down began and Rodney was getting concerned. He really did not know how to comfort someone, so he settled for making sure she ate at least once a day. "It will be nice to know a little more about the planet. If it's all ocean or if there is land out there."

"That would be interesting. A new land to explore, I could get excited about that," Jennifer said as she took a bite of her sandwich. It continued to surprise her that Rodney took the time to eat a meal with her each day.

"So, does that mean you are contemplating my offer?" Rodney stopped eating to stare at the beautiful woman across from him.

"No. It just means my curiosity is piqued," she replied with a bigger smile.

"Doctor Keller," Marie came into her office. "I'm sorry to disturb you, but Halling wishes to speak with you."

"Oh, okay," Jennifer turned to Rodney. "I'm sorry. I need to go."

"Sure. I'll catch you later," Rodney said. His disappointment at Jennifer leaving him for one of the Athosians was palpable. _Why do I care who she hangs around so much? You'd think we were dating. _After that thought, his own radio went off; Sheppard was back and found something.

* * *

The next day, Jennifer stood in the jumper bay with several Athosian children hugging her and unchecked tears flowing down her face. The Athosians were going to the mainland to explore and set up a settlement. All the shuttles were ferrying them back and forth throughout the afternoon. She begged Halling and Kanaan to let Adira remain, but Halling insisted that they all must leave to prove their innocence. After the last of them loaded on the shuttle, she swiped at her wet cheeks and turned to find Teyla standing stony faced behind her. Their eyes connected and Jennifer felt fresh tears welling up in her eyes.

"You are a great friend to my people, Doctor Keller," Teyla said with a smile.

"Jennifer, please. You don't have to be formal with me," she said as she wiped her eyes on her sleeve again.

"They will be okay. Being under the open sky with land to explore and crops to plant will be good for them." Teyla said as if reassuring herself as well as Jennifer.

"I will miss them. I hope Kanaan will not take too long to contact me if anything happens with Adira." Jennifer told the Athosians she would fly out once a week to check on them.

"He is very protective of his younger sister." Teyla and the physician turned toward the transporters.

"Yes. It seems like he is going to _miss_ you as well." Jennifer could not help but smile as she emphasized the word _miss_. The farewell exchanged between Teyla and Kanaan looked intense from where she had stood. It was obvious to her that Kanaan cared about Teyla more than a friend.

"I will miss _all_ my people, Doctor…Jennifer," Teyla said with a smile. "Shall we get some dinner? Major Sheppard said we would be allowed to start using the Gate in the morning."

"Sure." Jennifer was suddenly smiling. She had not spent a great deal of time with Teyla and now wanted to get to know the Athosian leader better. Being raised by a man, she gravitated toward guys as friends, Halling, Kanaan, Carson, John and, of course, Rodney. Since Teyla would her people and she would, too, it seemed like something they could have in common.

"I'm sure John is happy about that. He hates the day-to-day military stuff. He is all about the missions," Jennifer said as she watched Teyla's face break into a smile.

"You have a great insight into our team leader. I wonder if you would _miss_ him a lot should he leave." Teyla apparently picked up on Jennifer's code.

"Oh, no. I can _honestly_ tell you that I have zero interest in Major Sheppard as anything but as a friendly, big-brother type," she said.

"Oh. You know how to drive a stake through a man's heart," John said from behind the two petite women.

"Damn right, I do," Jennifer said as she stopped and turned.

"Major," Teyla said while stopping to wait for him to catch up.

He slid an arm around Jennifer's shoulders having watched her crying as he took the first batch of Athosians to the mainland. "They will be okay. It's only twenty-five minutes to get you out there if they have any problems."

"I know, but I got so used to them that…" Jennifer was suddenly choked up_. I need to toughen up. It's been pure luck no one I care about had died._

"Me too," John said softly so only Jennifer and Teyla walking next to them could hear. "It'll be nice to get back out there, however."

John kept his arm around Jennifer's shoulders because he knew Rodney was waiting for them in the mess hall. He could not pass up an opportunity to cause the arrogant man grief where the beautiful doctor was concerned.

Rodney was planning on asking Jennifer if she wanted to explore a new room he discovered because he was quite certain it would appeal to her in order to get her mind off the Athosian exodus. As he glanced down the corridor leading to the mess hall, a wave of intense jealousy came over him. Sheppard had his arm wrapped around Jennifer's shoulder. He was leaning close and whatever he said caused her to smile. This was too much for him to take, so he turned and went back to his lab. _Why won't he leave her alone? She is not interested in him or is she?_ Even though he had spent more time with Jennifer than any other woman, Rodney did not know how to read her actions.

Jennifer was disappointed that Rodney was not at dinner and it made her so distracted she did not join in any of the conversations. After a little while, she headed off to her lab to finish her reports on the Athosians' medical files and to put them away. _Rodney had to know she was upset about the Athosians leaving. Why didn't he come to dinner?_

* * *

The next morning, Jennifer was still upset that Rodney did not visit her at all yesterday, which caused her not to sleep. His team along with Stackhouse's were all off world today, so she was on duty.

Radek and Jennifer were seated in her office discussing a device to monitor neural interfaces in real time situations and not staged in the lab allowing for a better study of the interface, when a call to report to the Gateroom came in. Someone had been injured.

"I gotta go, Radek," Jennifer said jumping up and running to the infirmary. She called Chuck to find out that a stunner blast hit John this time rendering him unconscious. Rodney and Stackhouse along with Yamamoto and Carter stayed with Weir. Her concern for John and hurt over Rodney's snub the yesterday kept her from ordering them all to the infirmary. She could hear shouts from Rodney about going back to get Teyla and Ford. _Don't think about them. Concentrate on John._

When Major Sheppard awoke, he battled with her about him staying in the infirmary and eventually Carson had to step in telling John if he fell down a flight of stairs because he could not walk they were not going to fix his broken leg. The major said he would risk it and hobbled to the control room for the debriefing. Carson said Rodney and Stackhouse were excused from physicals at the moment because Bates and Weir needed to talk to them about Teyla and Ford.

Jennifer headed back to her office. This was going to be another terrible day. _Who can believe it's almost Christmas? _If she was home on December 23rd, she would have been preparing baked goods for the senior citizen's center near her father's business. Then her father and she would go and buy their last-minute stocking stuffers. She smiled remembering how it became a tradition to get silly little things for their stockings; toothbrushes, screwdrivers, lots of candy or a silly knickknack. Tears welled up, as she thought of her father alone in the house. _He has no idea that I am safe. What must he be going through? At least I know he is safe on Earth._

Another call of Gate activity pulled her out of her office. Amanda and Carson went to get Ford and Teyla. When they returned with only Ford, who was unconscious, Jennifer realized everyone must blame Teyla for this. She realized she needed to talk to Rodney _now_. _The events of the last week have gotten way out of hand._

"Rodney, where are you?" Jennifer asked into her radio.

"In my lab, why?" Rodney's voice sounded strained.

"Because we need to talk. I'm on my way." Jennifer told Carson she had to check on something important and headed to the transport.

_We have to talk._ If they had been dating, those words would have sent fear through the nervous man. Since they were definitely not dating, they terrorized him. _What could possibly be so important that she is leaving the infirmary during her shift to talk to me?_

He spent the next few minutes pacing. _I should have talked to her yesterday after the Athosians left. I know how much she enjoyed working with them. But she had Sheppard to comfort her. They were very cozy in the corridor. _The battle going on in his head was causing pain.

"Rodney, you and I both know without a doubt that Teyla nor the Athosians could have caused this," Jennifer said as she came in to stand directly in front of him with arms crossed.

"Wha…" _Teyla is why she's here?_ "Of course. Yes. I mean _no_ the Athosians could not be involved."

"So, how do we prove it?" Jennifer pulled a stool over to sit down. Since she had not seen him in almost two days, she took an extra moment to look at him. Rodney had changed out of his BDUs into his uniform and had taken a shower because his hair looked damp. He was extremely agitated and fidgety. Teyla was his teammate and they had already faced quite a lot in the two months since the team had their first disastrous mission back to the Wraith planet.

"I know the numbers don't add up to a total coincidence, but she cannot be communicating with the Wraith," Rodney said pulling a stool up in front of her. This was how the two geniuses loved to trade ideas. Pamela Simpson said watching them go back and forth at two hundred miles an hour trading ideas and finishing each other's thoughts made her head spin.

"If they were lying in wait for you, they'd get you right out of the Stargate. It appears as if…" Jennifer said.

"Something is alerting them. After we get to the planet," Rodney said.

"A homing beacon or something like that," the physician said getting excited. _That's it._

"But I get no reading on Atlantis." Rodney turned and grabbed his laptop just to make sure of the readings. "Yup, no communications leaving Atlantis."

"Maybe it doesn't work here. Some dampening the Ancients put in place?"

"It's possible. We have not explored hardly any of this place, yet." Rodney looked around the room like something was in the room with them.

"Teyla was taken by the Wraith," Jennifer said.

"Along with Bates and several Athosians and Marines," Rodney continued.

"Including Halling. Maybe the Wraith planted something on them while they were captives and it activates when they are away from Atlantis." Jennifer was extremely excited now. Both she and Rodney were standing and going to his bank of computers.

"There could be something in the Ancient database," Rodney started only to get interrupted by a gruff voice coming from his doorway.

"I am sorry to interrupt, Doctor Keller, but I need to ask you to leave. I have official business with Doctor McKay," Sergeant Bates asked. He was always polite to Jennifer because the only man on the base he was scared of said to be.

"It's my lab. You can't throw her out." Rodney took offense of the Head of Security's attitude that he could order everyone around. He and Jennifer were onto something with this.

"It's okay Rodney. Sergeant Bates is just doing his job to keep us safe." Jennifer offered the Marine a half-hearted smile. She really did not like his suspicion of everyone, but it did make him a great choice as Head of Security. Sergeant Richards said Sheppard asked him if he wanted the job, but gave it to Bates after his refusal. "Let me know when you're done. I'm going to check on Aiden."

* * *

"Jennifer?" Carson was calling for her in her radio.

"Carson, what time is it? Did I oversleep?" Jennifer realized she fell asleep on top of the blankets in her uniform. Glancing at the clock, she realized it was early morning on Christmas Eve. She barely remembered ensuring Aiden was okay and being ordered by Carson to get some rest the previous evening.

"I need you in the main science lab as soon as you can. You've slept through a great deal." Carson sounded excited like a little kid.

"Give me fifteen minutes," Jennifer said as she headed to the shower.

After Jennifer's shower, she headed to Rodney's lab. Once there, Rodney filled her in on the details of the previous evening.

"We were on to something. It was a device that only transmitted on certain worlds. It was a locket Teyla had. John apparently activated it with his Ancient gene, but was too weak to signal from Atlantis." Rodney was beaming. He and Jennifer almost had it figured out and it amazed him that another human being could think in a similar fashion to him.

"So how did you find the locket?" Jennifer asked excited as well that she and Rodney almost figured it out. _We are a great team._

"Bates. He had confiscated Teyla's things and made me scan them. The locket was among them."

"Well, I wish you didn't have to invade her privacy, but at least we know the Athosians and Teyla were innocent." Jennifer pulled up a stool. "What is this meeting about?"

At that moment, Ford came in with a cart of weapons and small boxes followed by an excited looking Major Sheppard and Carson. Rodney suddenly started rubbing his hands together and then wiping his palms on his trousers. Jennifer and Sheppard looked at him.

"You seem nervous," the Major asked.

"No. I'm a part of this team. I'm doing this," Rodney answered.

"Doing what?" Jennifer asked with concern on her face.

"Yes, you are. I just said you seemed nervous." John and Rodney did not answer her.

"Oh, really. I thought you said, _Rodney, you don't have to do this_."

"Yes you do," John said and then finally to Jennifer, "We are going to capture a Wraith. That's why you and Beckett are here."

"What!" Jennifer bolted out of her stool. "Why?"

"So you guys can study it and to learn more about them." John explained looking at Carson and Jennifer.

Teyla finally came in looking at all the faces in the room.

"You're late," Sheppard said with a slight smirk.

"Sorry," Teyla responded.

"Now, given the Wraiths' regenerative abilities, killing one requires some amount of effort. Catching one alive is gonna be a whole other deal. For any of these options to work, your Wraith has to be on the ground," Ford said.

"The last planet we visited was inaccessible by ship and the, uh, ruins around the Stargate should force the Wraith to come through on foot," Rodney said.

"Doctor Keller, Doctor Beckett this is a stun grenade. It's filled with a mixture of aluminum and potassium percolate that, when ignited, produces a high pressure wave that will overwhelm the intended target with intense light and sound. Should that affect the Wraith?" Ford asked them.

Carson had moved over next to Jennifer and leaned against the table. "From the interviews we've done with Teyla and the Athosians as well as Major Sheppard's encounter, we have to believe they have the same sensory organs as us," Carson explained.

Ford handed a grenade to Sheppard. "Then these will get his head ringing, in addition ... you've got your taser."

"That should work, too. The Wraith arm we got had a whole host of neural connections just like in the human body, so shocking it will have an effect. I think you will need a lot more juice than you use on a person. You'll want to use the highest setting." Jennifer picked up a taser and turned it over in my hand. "The paralysis will only last for a short time with their increased strength. If you can get a hold of one of their stunners that should help, since they are set for humans you'll need to hit them several times, however."

"Thanks Docs. Any more advice for us?" John looked at them both and smiled in particular at Jennifer.

"Stay away from his hands," she said smiling back at him.

Rodney wanted Jennifer to smile at him as much as she did Sheppard. He also wanted to stay on Atlantis. Today was Christmas Eve and the last thing he wanted to do was hunt Wraith. While at her house, she and her dad talked about their Christmas traditions and how it will be the first time they are apart. A feeling that Christmas was going to be as tough as Jennifer's birthday caused the physicist a great deal of anxiety, which lead to him being much more subdued than normal.

* * *

Later that evening after the successful capture of the Wraith, Jennifer and the medical staff were performing the post mission physicals on the team. No one was seriously injured this time. Rodney and John had a Wraith explode near them and Teyla got some bruises from hand-to-hand combat, but nothing serious. Rodney was complaining of a ringing in his ears from the explosion and was still seated on an infirmary bed. Sheppard, Ford, Stackhouse and Richards were standing around while Jennifer looked into Rodney's ears. There was no reason to do it other than to placate him.

"So our new guest is settled in, I imagine?" Carson entered the room removing his lab coat.

"Yes. Good thing the Ancients had those cells designed for Wraith down there." Sheppard pulled a chair up and straddled it. "So what experiments are you going to run?"

"If you think any of my staff is going near that thing…" Carson started as he leaned against an empty bed.

"We have a stunner, so we can put it down," John said.

"Well, Rodney, I can't see anything wrong with your ears." Jennifer glanced at Carson and rolled her eyes smiling. She really was enjoying a reason for touching Rodney, though. He appeared so nervous and upset before leaving on the mission that she was terrified something was going to happen to him, so it was reassuring to have him back.

"Oh, he's just faking it. Doesn't want to have to work tomorrow," John said smiling at the young doctor. "Well, I don't have any gift wrap, but I hope you and Carson like your gift."

"A Wraith for Christmas? Something is _so_ wrong with that." Jennifer smiled at John because he remembered it was Christmas.

"It's Christmas?" Carson and Ford both said.

"Really?" Stackhouse added.

"Yes and all of you will find a gift from me in your quarters." Jennifer turned and hopped up on the bed next to Rodney.

Rodney looked at Jennifer raising his eyebrows. "How are you getting into peoples' quarters?"

"My secret. In addition to knowing everything, I have a secret way of controlling things, too," she said smiling at the genius.

"Her secret weapons are called Zelenka and Grodin," Richards said.

"Hey, I keep your secrets, Gunny. That wasn't fair." Jennifer whined.

"Grodin and Zelenka?" Rodney wondered how many other men were fawning all over Jennifer.

"I think you will all enjoy your gifts and I just have to say if they end up as someone else's poker winning, I will find you and you _will_ be punished." She glared at each man who looked like they could not wait to run to their quarters.

"I think we should all get out of here," Sheppard said getting up. As the Marines filed out saying _Merry Christmas_ to Jennifer and each other, he walked over to the bed his scientist and young friend sat on. "I hope the Wraith will be useful to you as well as us."

Carson nodded, "Aye, getting some live cells will help with a few projects I have in mind."

"Too bad it won't last that long," Jennifer said.

"What do you mean?" Carson asked.

"We can't meet its dietary requirements," Rodney said as he slid off the bed. Sitting next to Jennifer on a _bed_ was more than he could take. Especially since he had to give her a Christmas gift and see what she got him.

"I don't know, what about Kavanagh?" Carson said.

"You're lucky Weir didn't have something put on your file after that stunt," Jennifer said as she slid off the bed next to Rodney. She needed to make sure he did not leave without getting his gift.

"If you were over six feet tall and worked out, would you admit a pudgy, little doctor hit you?" Carson said.

"You are not pudgy?" Jennifer said as she hugged her old friend and pulled something from her pocket. "Merry Christmas, Carson."

"You too, love. What's this?" Carson asked as he opened the folded papers.

"You'll see," she said smiling. Giving gifts is so much fun.

"Oh, Jennifer. This is excellent," the CMO said with a dreamy look on his face and hugged Jennifer again."Coupons for fishing. Now that we found land, we'll have to see if there are some nice streams or ponds."

"You and my dad could be best friends. Every summer, we went fishing for days on end when I was a kid," Jennifer said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"That's nice," John said.

"I never want to touch a worm or a fish again," Jennifer added.

"Well, you can have a jumper ride to the mainland from me whenever you'd like as a Christmas gift," John said smiling.

"Or me," Rodney added. He needed to get rid of John and Carson so he could get her away. "I wonder if the mess hall remembered it's Christmas tomorrow?"

"Not sure, but I am hungry," Carson said.

"Meet you there in an hour?" John asked his friends.

"I think I'm going to turn it. It's been a long day," Jennifer said. _After I give Rodney his gift.  
_

"Me too," Rodney said as he followed Jennifer out of the infirmary.

"Rodney…"

"Jennifer…"

They both said at the same time causing them to laugh as the headed down the corridor.

"Go ahead," Jennifer said quickly.

"I was hoping you had a couple minutes so I can show you something I discovered the other day," Rodney said glancing around the corridor, which was deserted.

"And I need a couple minutes to give you your present," Jennifer said suddenly getting nervous. Now that she thought about it, it was not that great of a present. _Especially to the man who gave you a comet for your birthday._

"Really? So I don't get what everyone else is getting?" Rodney thought that she might be giving him _coupons_ as Carson called them for something. _Food, movie night, back rub… Whoa, better get that under control or you're going to loss it in the room._

"You're one of my closest friends. Of course I have more than a piece of chocolate for you," Jennifer said with a slight flush in her cheeks.

Rodney could not help but smile broadly after hearing her say that. _A close friend._ Since it was Christmas, he decided to not think about Sheppard being a close friend as well.

"Meet me on Level six outside the transporter and we can go to your surprise," Rodney said grinning.

"A black hole this time? Or maybe a constellation that looks like me?" Jennifer was curious about what he found this time. She had gotten to use the telescope a few times and had to admit, it was a great gift.

"You'll see. See you in fifteen," Rodney turned and left.

* * *

When they met outside the transporter, Jennifer was holding a small cardboard box that must have contained supplies in the infirmary. Rodney was holding his laptop.

"Shall we?" He said as he opened the transporter door. Jennifer saw him press a point on the far end of the south side of the city and wondered what he had discovered.

Rodney and Jennifer walked into a room that had a dome ceiling and smooth walls encircling it with the light coming from the floor. A console that seemed to drop out of the wall to the right of the door and two cots in the middle of the room were all that was there. _Cots?_ Jennifer suddenly looked at Rodney with some fear in her eyes. _What did they need cots for?_

"Why don't you go lie down while I get this program ready to go. I discovered this last week and have wanted to show it to you. When I realized it was Christmas, I thought I could give you another gift. I can't really give it to you, but no one knows about the room and…" Rodney was speaking rapidly as he always did when he was nervous. Glancing at Jennifer, who was unmoving and staring at him with a strange expression, caused him to stop talking. "Are you okay?"

"Ah… Yes… I…" Jennifer could not get out any words. _Rodney expected her to lie down on one of those beds? With him next to her? _While she had to admit her mind did drift to thoughts of being held by Rodney late at night when she could not sleep, the idea that they might… _What?_ She honestly had no idea what he was planning.

"Jennifer, are you sure you're okay? You have been working really hard and I know losing the Athosians from the city is hard on you. Maybe you're coming down with something. I think you really ought to lie down." Rodney reached out to take the box from her and put a hand on her shoulder turning her toward the beds.

His contact and the fact that he took his present seemed to wake her a bit from her daze. "What is this place?"

"You'll see. It works better when you are lying down." Rodney held the box in one hand and noticed it was pretty light. "Is this my gift?"

"Hey, give that back. Most of the fun is _giving_ the gift," Jennifer reached to grab the box only to have Rodney lift it high over his head causing her to jump up to try and grab it.

Seeing Jennifer jumping to reach for it was making him laugh. She was really cute with a long braid in her hair and a pink sweater and jeans on. His eyes were drawn to her chest and when her body rubbed against his, he almost moaned. _Okay, McKay, not one of your brightest ideas._

Jennifer decided Rodney was teasing her long enough. She stopped grabbing for the box, glared at him and reached out to tickle his stomach. The box fell, Rodney dropped his arms to grab her hands and move them away from his body. A look of satisfaction filled her face. "I told you I _knew_ you were ticklish."

Rodney could barely breathe after Jennifer moved her hands over his stomach. He was wearing a shirt, but the thought that the beautiful woman in front of him was tickling him shocked his brain. He did not let go of her hands for fear that if she touched him again he would not want her to stop. "That… was cruel, Doctor."

"You're lucky your present is not breakable." Jennifer was slow to pull her hands out of Rodney's. She always had cold hands and the warmth from Rodney's sent tremors through her body.

"Don't do that again," Rodney managed to squeak out. He did not really mean it. The desire to have Jennifer touch him was always there, but he needed to regain some dignity after squirming and squealing like a kid when she tickled him.

"Fine. Don't steal a gift before I give it to you," Jennifer said picking up the box, which she had thankfully taped shut. "Now. Merry Christmas, Rodney."

Jennifer held the cardboard box in front of her for Rodney to take. He was still trying to compose himself. The shaft of desire that shot through him when her body rubbed against his was still wrecking havoc with his composure.

"Thanks." He had hoped to be funny like Sheppard was with her, but now realized he had looked stupid. Forcing his body to calm down and shaking his head, he took the box from her smiling shyly. When he looked into the box and saw several packages of a substance he worshiped more than chocolate, his body once again took over for his brain. The genius pulled Jennifer to him with one arm until he sat the box of coffee down on the console, then slid his other arm around her hugging her tightly to him. "Jennifer. How did you… This is the best present. We're almost out. The kitchen staff predicts another month and then it'll be gone."

Rodney realized he was crushing Jennifer, so he let her go. Their eyes connected for a moment and it appeared as if Jennifer was not able to focus. "Jennifer. I think you really need to rest. Go and lie down, so I can show you your gift." Taking her by the shoulders, he turned and directed her to the cots.

Jennifer was stunned. She was just getting over the feel of him holding her hands and remembering the contact she made with him while leaping up for the box. _Rodney hugged me? _She could hear him talking rapidly about something, but the smile on his handsome face when he saw the coffee in the box and the way his blue eyes lit up were the last things she noticed before being pulled against his body. Her higher brain functions ceased and this time, she stood stupidly in front of him unable to move her arms to hold him.

"What is this about?" Jennifer was slowly getting out of the stupor caused by Rodney's hug. _You are really pathetic. The guy finally initiates contact with you and you stand like an idiot. He's going to think you can't stand the thought of him touching you. Now he won't do it again._ She continued to berate herself as she sat on the cot and laid back.

Suddenly, the room got dark and the ceiling lit up with stars looking like the hologram room with the Ancient. A thought crossed Jennifer's mind, "Won't this drain power?"

"Huh. A little. We can't run it for very long. Now," Rodney said as he paused to drop onto the cot next to her, "pick a star you want to see up close. Since you don't have the gene, you'll have to point it out for me."

"What?" Jennifer turned her head to see Rodney looking at her. He had his hands folded over his chest and a sly grin on his face. _What is this about?_ "Is it some type of planetarium?"

"Will you stop with the questions and go with it?" Rodney said trying to be annoyed while grinning broadly.

"Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black, Mister Man-of-a-Thousand-Questions?" Jennifer said laughing. _Rodney thinks **I** ask too many questions._

"Just pick a star," he said with mock annoyance.

"Fine. How about that one?" She pointed to one directly above them. The cots were next to each other but there was a gap between them, which kept them from touching. When she entered the room and saw the cots, her inexperience in this type of situation caused her to pause in fear. Now that she remembered whom she was with, she relaxed._ This is Rodney; he's not going to do anything inappropriate._

The room suddenly shimmered around her and the star she looked at pulled into view with a full solar system around it. A gasp escaped from her lips as she glanced at Rodney lying next to her. His eyes were closed and he was concentrating. The solar system zoomed in and suddenly one planet stood out. It looked grey and was covered in swirling clouds.

"It's like a super planetarium," Jennifer said with awe in her voice.

"Better than that. Let me show you. Okay, this is a planet we just explored without any Wraith," Rodney said as the picture shifted to a different solar system and finally a planet that was green with vegetation. As Rodney's thoughts brought the planet closer, the walls began to shimmer around them, engulfing them in a forest with sounds of wind and forest creatures echoing around the room.

"It's like a holodeck from Star Trek," Jennifer gasped.

Rodney could not help but grin. _She likes it. Maybe this gift-giving thing is not so hard after all. What's the next holiday?  
_

"Rodney, I'm sorry I only got you coffee," Jennifer said with disappointment in her voice.

"Only! I will be the envy of my whole department. I'll still have a morning coffee, if I ration it properly, for a couple months after them. Imagine when I show up ready to work and they are all slumped in a caffeine-withdrawal-induced stupor." Rodney looked smug in the glow from the _holographic_ _planet._ "Oh and you can have some too. I have a small coffee machine hidden in my quarters."

"It's fine. I already gave up my ration. I don't need the caffeine."

"What? When did you do that?" Rodney was surprised, but knew he should not be. If someone had to make a sacrifice for the others, he should have known it would be Jennifer.

"There are others, yourself included, who need it more than me. Now, back to my gift. I don't want to drain the ZPM, so let's make the most of it," Jennifer said and reached her hand out to squeeze his arm. "Thank you for a wonderful Christmas, Rodney."

"You too, Jennifer." Rodney raised his hand placing it over hers. _I wish we could stay here all night._ The physicist did not know that his companion had the same thoughts going through her mind as she reluctantly pulled her hand back.

**TBC**

**

* * *

**

**A/N: I know another romantic ending, but it is my AU : )**

** Childhood's End is coming right up after this one. It is short and very different from these. **


	10. Tag to Childhood's End

**MGM owns all character.**

**A/N: This is an episode Tag. I'm not forcing Jennifer into every episode. Obviously, the early ones needed to establish her place in the expedition, so she was heavily involved.  
**

**Thanks to scr1tno and dwparsnip for their beta work. Thank you to all the reviews. They keep me going. I honestly never thought I'd get this far. I'm glad you all like it so far.  
**

* * *

Sergeant Dwayne Richards entered the mess hall looking for his CO. Major John Sheppard was not his kind of soldier because he was too relaxed with discipline. _Discipline is what holds the military together_; his drill instructor used to say when he first joined the Corps over twenty years ago. He could not believe what he just discovered and needed to understand what the major was thinking. Major Sheppard was seated with Doctor Carson Beckett and Teyla near a large window at the front of the mess hall.

_Good, I can find out where Beckett's head was at, as well._ "Good evening, sir," Dwayne said as he stood at attention. It was still hard to take the lack of saluting, but he knew it was because of all the civilians.

"Good evening, Gunny," Sheppard said smiling. "Oh, at ease."

"Permission to speak freely, sir," Richards asked.

"Of course, Gunny. You never have to ask that from me," John sat up a little straighter in his chair.

"Why did you allow Sergeants Markham and Mace to take Doctor Keller to M7G677, sir?" He gave the major and Doctor Beckett critical looks.

"The kid planet? It's Doctor Keller's first off-world mission, so we picked a safe place and I sent an extra guy. Is that a problem?" The Colonel looked confused.

"I don't question sending an extra man, sir. I question the men you sent. I'm not sure if you realized that you sent the two youngest sergeants along with the youngest civilian…" Dwayne paused in his speech to see how thick his CO was. By the perplexed look Sheppard exchanged with Beckett and Teyla, he was pretty thick. "It's not just kids, sir. The planet has people that are in their early twenties, too. You sent…"

"Oh, shit." John genuinely liked Gunnery Sergeant Richards, but felt like the older man did not approve of him very much. _This won't help._ Normally Sheppard would not care, but for some reason, with this soldier, he did. _How could I have been such an idiot? All those young women for the soldiers and Keller… Idiot. He_ jumped out of his seat knocking the chair over. Teyla looked confused, but Carson appeared to realize the same thing because he jumped up, too. "Teyla, come with us."

* * *

Doctor Rodney McKay just entered the mess hall and had to move out of the way for his team leader and Carson, who were walking pretty fast, followed by Sergeant Richards and Teyla. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"

"No need to concern yourself with this McKay. Enjoy your dinner," John called over his shoulder.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Rodney followed the group back down the corridor.

"We have to go back to 677 and I know you don't want to go there," John shouted.

"_No_, I don't. I'm fine here. Enjoy," Rodney said turning back to the mess hall to look for Jennifer. She left for her first off-world mission this morning and should have been back. He could not help but chuckle as he remembered how nervous she was. The scientist would have liked to be with her on her first mission, but he did not want to go back to those kids. _Wait a minute! Didn't he just say 677? _"Sheppard!"

The soldiers and Teyla were taking off in Jumper Two as Rodney came jogging into the Jumper bay and called on his radio. "Sheppard, what happened? Did the shield fail again? Is someone injured?" _Please don't say Jennifer. I knew I should have gone with her. _

"The shield is fine and no one is injured. We'll see you when we get back," John said over the radio as the ship lowered through the floor to the Gateroom.

* * *

Jennifer was hobbling back toward the jumper alone because she had no idea where Sergeant Mace had gone. Several young women from the village were following him around, so she could only imagine what he might be doing with them. Markham remained with the jumper outside the field and since radios did not work within the field, she could not call him to get her. _How could you have stumbled over a tree root and fell down a hill? _As Jennifer thought over this day, she could feel her face burning with embarrassment.

**

* * *

Previous Day**

After Team Sheppard's return from M7G-677, Jennifer, Carson and the rest of the medical staff were quite interested in this society of young people and children.

"Let's get some baseline medical information first," Carson said in a meeting to discuss the planet and it's possible needs. He had smiled at Jennifer and she knew this was her chance to go off world. Kate Heightmeyer was begging Carson to go check things out as well.

Jennifer was positive the psychologist wanted to _study_ the kids. Her dislike of the profession of psychology began when she was a child. It made her a hypocrite when she yelled at Rodney for blaming all doctors for a few bad ones because she did the same thing. Because of her genius status at a young age, some psychologist always wanted to _study_ her and then questioned her father's decision to rush her through school. _She is missing the opportunity to be with children her own age. How will she adapt socially? Her development will be affected. All crap. I've turned out fine._

After the meeting, she approached her boss, who had been cornered by several staff members. "Was that glance permission to go?"

"Only if you go with some Marines. Talk to Major Sheppard. And only for one day. Also..." Carson continued with a long list of do's and don'ts.

"Enough, Carson. Okay. Okay, I'll wear clean underwear, too." The young woman and her mentor laughed.

"I am being a bit of a mother hen, aren't I, love?" Carson said as he slid an arm around her shoulders.

"You and Rodney both take that promise to my dad way too seriously. This base is full of soldiers who are sworn to protect us. A shield to keep the Wraith away protects the area on the planet. We'll be going by jumper for a quick get away. I'll be fine," she said stressing each word. "Nothing will go wrong."

* * *

**Earlier Today**

Not much did go wrong until she started acting like a silly teenager instead of a twenty-six year old woman. Keras, the village leader, who just turned twenty-five, spent the day with her; showing her around, introducing her to the leaders of the other villages and answering her questions. They shared a meal at lunchtime and he helped calm some of the younger children when she drew blood samples. Jennifer enjoyed spending time with the handsome, young man and being out on her own in the Pegasus galaxy.

They had been using a small hut near the edge of the village for the examinations. It contained a small bed, table and a couple of chairs, but nothing else. It was often used for the isolation of those in trouble until their punishment was complete. Jennifer set up her supplies and laptop in the kitchen area with the bedroom area behind a curtain wall, which was being used as the examination area.

"Doctor Keller, do you wish to examine me as well as the children?" Keras asked with a smile after they finished with the youngest of the children. Jennifer had brought some of her secret stash of candy, which Rodney still had not found, to share with them.

"That would be helpful. As one of the oldest, you could have antibodies and such in your blood the younger ones might not. It will help us learn more about different bacteria or viruses that you have been exposed to. I need to get some more vials to put the samples in. Just go into the examination area and I'll be right there," the physician said as she went to her supply bags.

"I will be waiting," Keras said smiling and looking into her eyes for longer than was normal.

After he left, Jennifer got a sudden feeling that she missed something. _What did that long look mean? _As ideas floated through Jennifer's head, she got her vials and went around the curtain. Her shriek could be heard through the surrounding area, but Sergeant Mace was busy making out with one of the villagers and Markham was about a quarter mile away in the jumper, so none of her escorts would come running.

"I am sorry to startle you, Doctor Keller," said a _naked_ Keras. "You are an amazing full-grown: kind, smart, funny and extremely beautiful. I spoke with your soldiers and asked them if you belonged with any of them and they said no. In some villages, couples bond with each other many seasons. In my village, we do not. We lie with each other and then move on. I must say you are the first that I might wish to be with many times."

Jennifer stared in absolute shock at the handsome, naked young man before her. His words barely registering. It was _obvious_ to the doctor that he was physically attracted to her and she realized the laughing and smiling she did with him earlier could have be misinterpreted. Slamming her eyes shut, she tried to think of what to do. _Oh, this can't be happening to me. After over a decade of no man giving me a second glance on Earth, my first off world experience in the Pegasus galaxy results with me being propositioned by the first man I meet. What do I do?_

Keras moved toward the stunned woman who had her eyes closed and mouth slightly ajar. Her beauty was unlike anything he had seen before. _If I had went through with the sacrifice, I would not have met her.  
_

As soon as she felt his hand touch her cheek, her eyes flew open and she backed away from him like he was poison. "I'm… Uh… Ah… sorry if you got the wrong idea. I…Ah… I don't… My people don't do this. I mean they do this. Just I don't. You're great… But… Ah… I need to… Uh… Check in. Yes, I need to check in with Sergeant Markham. He'll be worried. Can't let him worry. You know how soldiers get." She turned and stumbled out of the hut forgetting about her supplies.

The stunned woman started heading toward the jumper_. He wanted to have sex with me? Just like that. I haven't even known him a day. What if I led him on? What if I just insulted him? Oh, Weir will kill me if I cause problems with one of the first planets we visited._ The more she thought about leading the young man on or causing a diplomatic disaster, the faster she walked until she was running, which was when she tripped over a tree root causing her to tumble down a small hill. Her knee was cut and blood seeped through her pants. She had scratches on her arms since she left her jacket behind and one on her cheek that she could feel stinging.

**

* * *

Present**

Jennifer saw the jumper and knew she reached the edge of the protective field. The back door was up, which really surprised her. "Markham, are you there? Markham?"

Pulling out the opener she had and pushing the button, out of the corner of her eye she saw something flying over the large pond near the village. It looked like another jumper. _Who was that?_ Panic went through her as she thought of Rodney or Carson finding her with a bright, red face and then explaining what happened. _No way could I go back there even with someone. I saw Keras naked._ Even though she was a physician, seeing aroused naked men was not a common occurrence for her.

Turning to see what happened to Markham, she saw a woman sitting astride the young sergeant. By the way they were moving, Jennifer had no doubt what they were doing.

"You've got to be kidding me," she screamed at them as she turned away from the shuttle. "You people are going to outgrow the shield in a few years if you keep it up."

"Go. Get out of here." She could hear the strained voice of Billy Markham from insinde the jumper yelling at the girl. Some female whining could be heard and then the sounds of them walking down the ramp. Jennifer was tired and humiliated. She wanted to go home and curl up with Scruffy Dog, so she sat on the ground to rest her leg and watched the second jumper land beside Jumper Three with the door facing them.

"Jennifer, what happened?" Markham had apparently noticed the scratches on her face and arms and the bloody knee. Dropping down next to her, he touched her shoulder.

"Don't touch me. I know what you were doing." Jennifer jumped up wobbling on her bruised knee. _Just let me get off this crazy planet._

"Doctor Keller," Sergeant Richards said, as he was the first to emerge from the shuttle. He immediately took in the scrapes and the bloody knee and turning with a furious expression to Sergeant Markham growling, "What happened to her?"

Sergeant Markham snapped his body to attention. "I don't…I don't know, sir. She was supposed to be with Sergeant Mace."

Teyla, Carson and Sheppard emerged from the jumper causing Jennifer to moan. _At least Rodney's not with them, but Carson will be bad enough._

"Don't ask. I just want to go home," she said starting to hobble to the new jumper. After what Markham was doing in Jumper Three, she did not want to go in it.

It was John who grabbed her by both arms and looked into her eyes. She saw a look of concern unlike anything she had seen before on his face and _fear_. "Jennifer, what happened to you?"

The seriousness of his voice and the way everyone was looking at her suddenly made her realize what she must look like; scraped face and arms, bloody knee, her t-shirt out of her pants from her fall, hair messed up and missing jacket. "I fell down a hill. I wasn't watching were I was going. I was coming back to tell Markham I needed some assistance with my stuff."

"Oh, thank goodness." Carson let out the breath he was holding. Since Richards reminded him of all the young men on this planet, he had the worse thoughts going through his mind. Seeing Jennifer visibly shaken with scratches made him think the worse might have happened. He never should have sent his sweet, innocent friend here without Rodney or someone to look over her. _Never again. I won't let her off world unless she is with men I know I can trust. _The Scotsman quickly wrapped a protective arm around his young friend. "Teyla, love, could you help me get her to take some weight off this leg."

Teyla stepped up and slid her arm around Jennifer and helped her hobble up the jumper ramp.

Sergeant Markham knew if they could contact Earth, he would be back there so fast his head would spin. He did not know what happened to Jennifer but the idea that someone might have harmed her was at the forefront of his mind. Obviously his CO, Doctor Beckett and Gunny Richards thought that too. Never had he been so afraid for his life as when Sergeant Richards looked from Jennifer to him. The young Marine thought Richards was going to kill him and given his reputation as an old Black Ops guy that was a real possiblity.

"Carson, do you feel up to flying?" John said as he glared at Markham. He made a big mistake sending these two young men out with Doctor Keller. The sergeant obviously let his guard down with the pretty doctor.

"Aye, I'll take Jennifer and Teyla back," Carson's voice came from Jumper Two.

"Good. Just take off, line it up and dial the gate. I'll see you when we get back," John said without ever taking his eyes off Markham. "Where's Mace?"

"I don't know, sir."

"Well you and Gunny are going to find him, while I find out what happened to Doctor Keller from Keras." His voice was steady and calmer than he felt. The thoughts that went through his head when he first saw Jennifer surprised him. He was ready to kill if she had been assaulted. The young woman had managed to find a way past the walls he so carefully constructed. _How the hell did that happen?_ His feelings toward her were not romantic in nature contrary to what most of the base thought. She was just a genuinely nice, beautiful person and that was so rare that he could not help but like her. "By the way, Sergeant, you'll want to zip up your pants."

* * *

Jennifer sat in the infirmary bed glaring at Carson and Amanda looking at her scans._ How dare they confine her to the infirmary for the night?_ _I have some scratches that's all._ As a physician, she was capable of diagnosing herself. They were concerned she hit her head or might get an infection from the cut on her knee.

The only thing she was grateful for was the fact that Carson had told no one but the medical team and Weir that she had been injured. The thought of Rodney flying in to yell at her about being careless was not something she wanted today. Sinking back into the pillow in her private room she closed her eyes to try to rest, but only saw a naked Keras.

"Hey, Doc, how're you feeling?" John Sheppard said as he entered the room.

"She appears to only have a cut and some scratches." Carson filled him in.

"And because of that Doctor Overly-Cautious is keeping me here until morning." Jennifer crossed her arms over her hospital scrubs and glared at her boss.

"Need to make sure ya didn't hurt your pretty, little head," Beckett said. "I need to check on Sergeant Mace. We had no idea he was an asthmatic. Poor lad apparently had an attack when Sergeant Richards and Markham located him. They had to carry him back to the jumper."

"Do you want some company?" John asked and pulled over a stool before she could answer.

"Sure. It beats the doctors," she shouted after Amanda and Carson who both left chuckling saying something about _doctors make lousy patients_.

"First I want to apologize for sending two incompetent Marines with you. That won't happen again, I promise." The major looked genuinely sorry.

"John, it's fine. Nothing happened to me," she responded.

"John? Since when do you use my first name?" Sheppard could not help but smile.

"Since you have the most serious expression I've ever seen on your face. They should not have been playing around with the locals, but they didn't cause me to fall or bruise my knee."

"If they stayed with you like they were supposed to, you would not have been alone with Keras." John said watching her eyes widen and cheeks flush. "He feels terrible that he scared you."

"He…he told you… I mean." Jennifer was tongue-tied as she felt her face flush and heart race. _He told John what happened. _She could not keep from burying her face in her hands allowing her hair, which was not held back, to form a curtain around her face.

"Yes, he told me because in their culture there is nothing wrong with wanting to have sex with a woman they just met. I explained that sort of thing didn't always happen where we come from." John was closely watching Jennifer's reactions once she lifted her head. He had a theory that if he was right about was going to make his life a whole lot worse.

"I feel like such a fool. Running away because someone wants to have sex with me. No one ever paid any attention to me whatsoever on Earth and the first time I go off world in another galaxy I get propositioned…I mean… just like that. I never… I," Jennifer could not continue. By the look on John's face he figured it out._ He knew she had never had sex before._ Her cheeks burned and she averted her eyes to stare at her hands clenching the sheet on her lap.

_Damn, I knew it._ John closed his eyes a second and groaned. _She's a virgin. What a nightmare._

At that moment, Jennifer's worse nightmare came true; the sound of Rodney McKay's voice was echoing through the infirmary. "What the hell happened? Why didn't you tell me, Carson? Those idiots better be busted back to privates by now."

John and Jennifer looked at each other. The major reached out to squeeze her hands. _She's had a bad enough day. Having to mention any of this to McKay would be hell on her._ Although if he was honest, he would have loved to see McKay attempt to console her. _The man has no people skills at all. _"I'll handle this. Pretend to be asleep."

He got up and put the stool away, reaching to dim the light switch near the door on his way out. "Oh, you shouldn't be embarrassed because you haven't found someone you want to sleep with. There's nothing wrong with that. You are definitely _not_ the type of girl to sleep around. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me."

Jennifer was stunned for a moment and then smiled at her friend._ Who would have thought that a ladies' man like Sheppard and a virgin like me could become friends? Only in Pegasus, I guess._ Settling back into the pillow, she closed her eyes and heard John telling Rodney to shut up because she was asleep. The sound of Rodney grilling John about what happened to her made her smile. _He sounds very concerned. _An image of Rodney helping her on the planet and sharing candy with the children replaced the one of the naked Keras. The memory of his smile and the sound of his laughter, which she memorized, made her feel secure and safe as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Are you sure she didn't get a concussion? She never sleeps this late." Rodney's voice permeated Jennifer's sleepy brain.

"Rodney, she's fine. Now let her sleep. You don't have to hover." Carson could be heard.

"Well… I got her fresh food, not _your_ stuff."

"I thought you liked hospital food?"

"I do, but I know Jennifer doesn't. Besides, she deserves something extra. Since her boss and everyone else let her down by sending her to _that_ planet with two idiots." Rodney was trying to speak softly, but he was upset. The sight of bruises, no matter how minor, on her perfect body send a surge of anger unlike anything he had ever felt before through him. "It's only pure luck she didn't get seriously hurt. I mean falling down a ravine. Are those scratches going to scar?"

"You could have gone with her, you know. It wasn't just my fault," Carson said with some anger in his voice. "And no, the scratches won't scar. I also don't think it was a _ravine_. It was a small hill."

"Well, I wanted to go with her on her first mission, but the kids… You even said you'd never trust me to babysit. Other than giving them candy, I have no idea what to do." Rodney sounded very close now. _He must have sat next to the bed. __  
_

"Remind me to warn any woman you ever get involved with to use birth control. Having a little McKay in the galaxy…" Carson started.

"Enough! I don't ever want to hear about anyone having sex again. Okay." Jennifer opened her eyes, sat up and caused both men to jump. "I've had enough sex going on around me yesterday to last a lifetime. That planet will be over populated in a couple of years because they apparently do it like rabbits." Jennifer was hungry and angry because the thought of Rodney and some unknown woman having sex sent an emotion through the young woman that she never felt before; jealousy. Grabbing the table with the food tray Rodney brought her, she pulled it close and dug in without looking at the two stunned men.

TBC

* * *

**A/N: I realize this is different from the others, but I hope I don't lose anyone. Poisoning the Well will be up next and will take a while. **


	11. Poisoning the Well Part 1

**MGM owns all characters. Some dialogue taken from GateWorld.  
**

**Thanks HalCooper and scr1tno for their beta work and all my loyal reviewers and the new ones, too.**

**A/N: Poisoning the Well is a pivotal episode in my AU story, so I am splitting it into two parts. Once you read, you will understand why. Sorry to do this, but long chapters are hard to read and I realize everyone needs time to do other stuff besides read my ramblings. Thanks for understanding and hope you enjoy.**

**

* * *

**

Jennifer was exhausted, but kept running alongside Sergeants Richards, Stackhouse and Warrington. The last week since her return from M7G677 had been one of frustration for the young doctor. Carson and Rodney hovered around her like she was going to break and Sheppard just laughed about it. She was never alone in the city except in her quarters and even then, she was sure someone from the military was hanging around. Poor Mace and Markham got the worst assignments imaginable and if she tried to talk to them, they basically ran from her.

When Jennifer tried to address the amount of attention paid to her safety _in_ Atlantis, it was John who pulled her aside telling her how much the soldiers admired her and felt awful she got hurt under their protection. Jennifer went out of her way to make the soldiers feel important, respected and listened closely to their orders and her battles with Kavanagh and several other arrogant jerks from Rodney's department only cemented her status among the soldiers; they would do anything to protect her. The young physician relented in her threats to go to Weir if they did not lay-off and accepted her fate.

Sheppard's team had been off world for almost two days, so she spent most of her time in the infirmary on duty, working on one of her many research projects or doing something to keep busy and keep her mind off the constant concern she felt when they were off world. Hence her current run through the city with the Marines during her lunch break.

"Doctor Keller," Chuck's voice came over her radio.

"Go ahead, Chuck," Jennifer said as she paused in her run slightly out of breath. Her knee still hurt occasionally, so she had not run much since her injury.

"Major Sheppard's team is coming back and Doctor Weir wants you to attend a meeting in the conference room in twenty minutes."

"Okay. On my way." Jennifer looked at the Marines, who stopped running and stood around her. "I've been summoned by Doctor Weir. I'm heading back."

"Come on. I'll show you a shortcut to the transporter," Richards said as he nodded for her to follow him into one of the nearby doorways.

* * *

After grabbing a five-minute shower and racing to her lab to get her laptop, Jennifer arrived in the conference room to see Carson, Doctor Weir and Team Sheppard seated around the table. Jennifer sat between Rodney and Carson while Sheppard updated Elizabeth and Carson on an interesting find on this planet, Hoff. The Hoffans believed that they had created a biological way to stop Wraith from feeding on humans.

"According to Chancellor Druhin the drug is still several years away from being finished," Teyla said.

"I'd say, given their current level of technology that…er… could be an understatement. Just because they believe they're close to a breakthrough, it doesn't mean that they are," Rodney added.

"You saw for yourself, their entire civilization is based upon the completion of that goal, Doctor McKay. I would not underestimate them," Teyla replied.

"Do we even know for certain that the Wraith are an immediate threat?" Elizabeth asked.

Jennifer and Carson were still digesting the original news of a biological means of combating the Wraith. The bright eyes on Carson's face told Jennifer that she was not going to be able to rein him in on this one.

"We can probably bet they don't have fifty years," John said finally getting Jennifer's attention and smiling.

"Hence Major Sheppard has generously offered our help to the Hoffans." Rodney shifted, crossing his arms, and appeared annoyed when he looked at Jennifer.

She raised her eyebrows at Rodney and then glanced at Sheppard across from them as if to ask, _what's up with him?_

"He did, did he?" Carson said leaning forward.

"Look, the fact is, if they're onto something, maybe we can speed up the process," John said.

"Please, Major. What level of technology are we talking about here?" Carson said. "We can't run in to help every group that has some half-baked idea."

"I think Mendeleev would feel at home in that lab," McKay added.

Carson rolled his eyes and John jumped in with the closing argument. "Fine. If you don't want to do it, I'm sure Doctor Keller would be happy to step back in history a little."

"Absolutely not. Fine." Carson said crossing his arms and glaring at the Major. "But you can't go volunteering us for something without consulting with me first. That's not even volunteering, is it? It's being pressed into service. Not to mention the fact that I'm not..."

"Not military, I can't give you orders. I know," Sheppard finished for him.

"I must agree with Doctor Beckett's comments and ask you to refrain from volunteering anyone for anything without checking in with me first," Elizabeth said as she leaned forward.

"He's not upset, he just doesn't like going through the Stargate," Rodney said looking smugly at Carson.

"He's worse than Doctor McCoy," Sheppard added.

"Who?" Teyla asked.

"The TV character that Doctor Beckett plays in real life," the Major explained.

"Converting a human body into energy and sending it millions of light years through a wormhole; bloody insanity," Beckett continued to protest.

"C'mon, how often do you _voodoo_ doctors get to travel to an alien planet?" Rodney said trying and failing not to smile.

"I'm already on an alien planet!" Carson barked at him.

Elizabeth watched the banter and laughed internally. She had wondered how all these personalities would mix and it has gone pretty smoothly. The administrator was not too removed to notice the tension between her head of research and head of the military where the young Doctor Keller was concerned. It appeared as if her injury on M7G677 was a sore point between all of them including Doctor Beckett. She decided to stay out of it and let the adults work it out for themselves.

As usual, Doctor Keller's sense of humor was able to break the tension. Jennifer burst out laughing, so everyone turned to look at her. "You're not fooling me, Carson."

"So _now_ you're going to jump to my defense? You have been _exceptionally_ quiet today." Beckett glared at his young friend.

"No. But, I know how you _love_ the opportunity to _debunk_ bad medicine so don't act high-and-mighty. _Thou shall not volunteer the Great Carson Beckett without his permission_," Jennifer said in an exaggerated voice like she was proclaiming the Ten Commandments. She then broke into laughter and several others joined her as Carson visibly deflated.

"I'll get you back, love. You won't know when, but I'll do it," Carson said.

"I would love to see you try," she grinned at her boss.

"OK, Major, you have a go. But if the drug really is just a pipe dream…" Doctor Weir left the rest unsaid as they got up to head out.

* * *

The next morning, Rodney McKay looked around the mess hall at 0700 looking for Jennifer. She had been avoiding being alone with him since the incident on M7G677 and he was more upset than he wanted to admit about it. Something transpired between her and Sheppard, but no one would tell him what. According to Carson, John was furious with the soldiers, who let her get hurt. The CMO confided that they suspected something terrible happened to her when they first found her. She looked like someone had tried to attack her. Rodney's blood boiled when he heard that. The thought of someone hurting sweet Jennifer caused him to feel a rage he never felt before. The scratch on her face had finally healed, but looking at it for several days made him want to punch someone. Instead of resorting to physical violence, he took it out on his scientists by demanding a week's worth of work in two days.

"Doctor Keller?" Rodney called on his radio and got no response. "Jennifer? Where are you?"

"Rodney?" A sleepy voice came over the headset. An image of Jennifer in her bed just waking up filled his head and he found he had to turn his back on the others in the mess hall. A blush rose over his cheeks as he remembered her appearance when he woke her up on their second day in Atlantis, the messy hair, relaxed look and her t-shirt stretching over her…

"I'm… Breakfast… You're late. You're late for breakfast. I'm waiting in the mess hall for you." He found a way to get his mind back from a place it ventured far too often lately.

"Oh no. My clock's not working. Okay. I'll grab a shower and be there in fifteen. Save me some muffins. I know they're almost gone," Jennifer said. He could hear the rustling of sheets in the background, as she climbed out of bed.

"Sure." He quickly shut off the radio because the sounds of clothing being taken off or water running would be too much for him to take. He might need to head to his own quarters for his second shower of the morning.

Jennifer could not stop laughing as Rodney told her about Carson's encounter with the female doctor who ran the program on Hoff. The woman was beautiful according to McKay. Carson had said the lab looked _dreadful _until her appearance then it was _perfectly charming_.

"And then he introduces himself as _Carson. Beckett. Doctor. I mean, call me Carson_." Rodney was laughing with her now.

Rodney's laughter was a sound Jennifer loved. She had not remembered hearing it since Christmas. _Wow, had it really only been a couple weeks since Christmas. _New Years was not very eventful because Jennifer fell asleep before midnight like always. Rodney told her he would force her to stay awake next year. When she awoke on New Years day, she ran into Amanda in the mess hall; she had a silly grin. Apparently, John Sheppard kissed her at the stroke of midnight. The thought of Rodney kissing her at midnight made her start to blush. _What would a kiss from Rodney McKay be like?_

"I will admit she is beautiful, though," Rodney said as he stared at nothing in particular on his tray.

"So you've said before," Jennifer said with a hint of anger in her voice. After fantasizing about kissing him, the last thing she needed was for him to talk about another woman.

"Hhhmm… she is a blond," Rodney said with a dreamy look on his face.

"Barbie?" Jennifer's voice rose enough so that Stackhouse and Warrington who were at the next table glanced over.

"Yeah. Blue-eyed blond. Reminds me of my girlfriends from high school and college and this Russian woman I met." Rodney was not paying any attention to the red-faced woman seated across from him.

The two sergeants glanced at each other both realizing that Jennifer was jealous of Rodney talking about the other women. Sly grins crossed their faces as they both realized they had the most interesting piece of gossip ever, Doctor Keller _likes_ Doctor McKay.

"You have a real thing for _blue-eyed blonds_ don't you? Especially the statuesque ones." Jennifer's voice was so cold, the Marines thought they saw frost coming out of her mouth.

"Well, I wouldn't call her statuesque. She was a little shorter than me. Like Samantha Carter," Rodney said as he continued to reminisce about the women of his past. It was surprising to him, but the longing he felt for them was not there. It was as if he were looking at pictures of them and they did not register as anything more than women he once knew. He had been intimate with most of them, Samantha Carter being one of the exceptions. _But she was much smarter than the other women I'd been with. Not the dumb blond-type I usually ended up with._ But none of them measured up to his closest friend seated across from him. When he glanced across the table at her and met the brown eyes that haunted his sleep whenever he was not exhausted enough to pass out, he found the angriest expression he ever saw there. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, just peachy," Jennifer said coldly and stood up abruptly. "Think I'll leave you to _dreaming about_ your conquests. I hope Carson keeps this particular one away from _you_."

"What are you babbling about?" Rodney still thought they were joking around. "I'm not interested in her."

"Oh, I forgot. No _voodoo_ doctors for the _Great_ Rodney McKay!" Jennifer stomped off.

"What the hell was that about?" Rodney looked at the two young Marines nearby with a bewildered expression.

The two Marines looked at each other and Stackhouse said, "Can't help you Doctor McKay." Both men started laughing as they left.

* * *

Jennifer had spent the rest of her day working with Peter and Radek configuring and testing a device to measure neural interfaces between those with active ATA genes and Ancient technology. They had been working on it for a couple of months now. When Rodney called at lunchtime, she ignored him.

"Jennifer?" Carson's voice sounded in her radio."Yes, Carson?"

"Jennifer, meet us in the conference room as soon as you can," Carson sounded more excited than she ever remembered.

"I'll be right there," Jennifer answered and left the engineers to finish their work.

She arrived at the conference room to find Doctor Weir and Carson discussing his visit to Hoff.

"I saw it with my own eyes, Doctor Weir," her boss was saying waving his hands excitedly.

"Yes, in a Petri dish, and we are talking about a hundred and fifty year old Wraith cells. I mean, for all we know, they could be immune to the drug by now or come up with defenses against it," Elizabeth countered as Jennifer sat down.

She had reviewed Carson's notes on her laptop at lunchtime and knew he was running a few experiments with the Hoffan samples and the Wraith cells from the arm Sheppard brought them. Apparently they found a protein from a man who was immune to Wraith feeding and Carson was helping them purify and test it.

"Well, I don't think so, Doctor. I took the liberty of running a few tests of my own using cells taken from the Wraith arm Major Sheppard brought back from Athos. The results were the same: near complete resistance. They've definitely got something. Believe me, I'm more surprised than anyone," Carson responded.

"So what do you recommend?" Elizabeth asked.

"That we take their work to the next level. I've informed the Hoffans of our guest in the brig," Carson said looking between Jennifer and Elizabeth with a wild gleam in his eye.

"Was that wise, Carson?" Jennifer asked. _Why did he tell them about the Wraith?_ _There is no reason for them to know that. What if they want it for experiments?_

"I didn't think it could hurt," Carson answered with a confused look on his face because Jennifer looked troubled.

"You realize what you're asking for?" Doctor Weir said with the same concern Jennifer felt echoed on her face.

"I do." Carson nodded as SGA-1 entered the conference room.

After they all settled, Carson started his briefing. John ended up seated next to Jennifer with Rodney across from them with an angry expression on his face.

"Using living Wraith cells is our only recourse at this juncture. Without them we have no way of knowing for certain if the drug is actually viable," Carson said.

"You said it worked effectively on the cells of the severed Wraith arm we brought back," Teyla said.

"It did, but those were already in a partially decayed state. We need live samples," Carson said.

Jennifer could not help but shudder at the thought of harvesting those samples. John noticed and smiled at her as he leaned closer. It was as if he wanted his presence to scare away thoughts of the Wraith. She could not help but smile at him.

"And with new samples you think it's possible to create a prototype?" Weir asked.

"Given enough time, yes I do," Doctor Beckett said.

"He's got a good point, the Hoffans are practically obsessed," Rodney said.

"Thank you, Rodney," Carson said.

"I agree, Doctor McKay," Teyla said and turning to Elizabeth, "But their obsession may become their undoing."

"Well, even if they do... undo, it'd be good for us. I mean, given the choice, wouldn't you want to be immune?" Rodney asked glancing around the room, glaring at John and Jennifer seated close together.

"Not if it meant the lives the Wraith might otherwise spare. This drug would only be of value if everyone, everywhere, possessed the same immunity," Teyla said.

"There's a thought worth pursuing," John said pointing at Teyla to his left.

"Scaling up a protein to inoculate an entire galaxy will take a sizable effort," Jennifer added feeling rather useless for the first time in her life. She was excited that Carson got to run this project and do exciting new research, but was uncertain of some of his decisions so far.

"I agree with Doctor Keller and also with Major Sheppard," Elizabeth added. Looking at the soldier, she said, "Major, have you made any progress with your prisoner?"

"Well, not yet, but he just blinked," John said.

"He blinked? What does that mean?" Rodney could not keep in his anger at John and Jennifer sitting together and sharing glances.

"It means he's still holding on but he's indicated to me that he may break soon," the Major clarified.

"And he indicated this to you by... blinking?" Rodney growled at him.

"Yes," John said with a smug look. _Jealous of Jennifer again? He is so easy to tease._

"No offence, Major, but so far he hasn't told you a thing. For all we know he could linger this way for months and ultimately we'll learn nothing," Carson said.

"The Wraith could be on their way to Hoff as we speak. If your prisoner holds the key to the creation of this drug, should we not take advantage of this?" Teyla asked.

"How can we get the sample off him safely?" Elizabeth asked.

"We still possess the weapons used in his capture. It would be a simple matter of incapacitating him again," Teyla said.

Jennifer swallowed hard, imagining someone in the cell with that monster. Based on the reports from Sheppard and Ford of what happened to Colonel Sumner and the data gathered from the arm and Hoffans, the feeding process is horrific.

"So, then, it's possible?" Elizabeth asked.

"It's possible," Sheppard said glancing at Ford and Teyla, the warriors on his team.

"Someone would have to be brain dead to go in there. Be sure to pick one of the stupidest soldiers you have," McKay said chuckling.

"John and I will sort it out. We'll send the cells through later this evening, Carson. I suggest you get back and get ready for them," Jennifer said in her take-charge voice.

"Thank you, Doctor Keller," Elizabeth said.

"All right. Ford, get the stunner. I'll meet you outside the holding area in twenty minutes," John said as he rose.

"So… sending in Markham or Mace," Rodney asked chuckling as he walked out ahead of them.

All fear of the Wraith vanished in a wave of anger for Jennifer. Her jealousy of the other women in Rodney's life, her annoyance at his lack of concern for the soldiers, the way he and Carson sheltered her lately and just a general desire to show she was as tough as the others pushed her to offer something that she never would have if she was behaving rationally. After she was alone with John, she said, "I'll get the cells. It will be faster and we won't have to do it again if someone messes up."

John felt a moment's hesitation, but seeing the determination in her eyes and the set in her jaw, he decided to let it go_._ "Sure. Go get your stuff. See you there."

Once Jennifer left, he got on the headset, "Stackhouse, Warrington, Richards, I need you three to meet Bates at the holding cell. We're paying Steve a visit."

"Hey Doc, is that all you need? Where's your firearm? I know you're qualified because I approved it," John smiled and then saw doubt on Jennifer's face.

"Do you think I need one?" She asked with big eyes.

"No. We'll stun him a couple times and I brought in all your buddies to protect you, so nothing to worry about." John smiled and projected a calm persona to ease any fear she might have.

"You didn't tell the Gunny I was doing this, did you?" Jennifer asked. She knew he would have a heart attack and might actually physically bar her way.

"He'll be there to protect you. You have nothing to worry about." John led the way to the transport and ran into Aiden with the large stunner that he always thought looked like a giant grub with a tail.

"Joining us, Doc?" Aiden asked.

"Yup," Jennifer said smiling. _Everything was going to be okay. Nothing will go wrong._

* * *

Almost as soon as she thought it, she stepped off the transporter into a nightmare; Rodney McKay was standing in the middle of the corridor with Gunny Richards, who was decked out in tactical armor, a 9mil holstered on each leg and his P90 clipped to his vest. The astrophysicist was looking bored, but when he saw her with a tray of vials, his handsome face contorted into the angriest expression she ever could have imagined. His face flushed red and then it turned white as every vein in his neck could be seen. His fists clenched into white-knuckled balls visible over his crossed arms. "John, this had better be an elaborate hoax to see how pissed off I can get."

"Calm down, Rodney."

John shot his oldest soldier a glance and the Sergeant returned his look with ice in his eyes. _Damn. I'm sure he's as pissed as Rodney._ "What are you doing here, McKay?"

"I was wondering how you were going to harvest the cells," he said as his eyes drifted from John back to Jennifer. "Now I see you're letting Jennifer go in there with that monster."

"You don't need to be here, so leave," Jennifer said coldly to Rodney.

"Only with you," Rodney said standing his ground.

"This is ridiculous, McKay. There are six heavily armed soldiers here. We'll stun it a couple times and if he twitches, we'll put him down again. When are you going to trust that I don't want her harmed any more than you?" John did not want to have this _particular_ discussion in front of his men, but he realized his messing around with Rodney's jealous nature where Jennifer was concerned might have carried on too long.

"Funny way of showing it," Rodney spat at the Major.

"Enough! Carson is waiting for these, so let's do this." Jennifer made to walk past Rodney only to have him grab her arm. She held his angry blue gaze with her own and it strengthened her resolve."Hey! What are you doing? Let me go."

"Only when you start showing some common sense. Have you seen that thing? It's about twice your size." Rodney was getting desperation in his voice.

His grip on her upper arm was not painful, but it was tight enough that she could not pull out of it without a lot of effort. _Perhaps fighting with him is not the best method._ "Okay, Rodney, I get it, you're trying to do my father's bidding, but I will be fine. If it bothers you so much, stay and watch."

When her eyes connected with Richards', she saw fear on his face and it shocked her.

"You can show me how to do it, Doctor Keller. You don't need to put yourself in danger," Dwayne said in his calm baritone voice.

Now Jennifer was in a tough situation. She did not want to disobey one of the soldiers, but she could not back down in front of Rodney. He would never let her out of her quarters without an armed escort if she caved in. "I appreciate the offer, but we need to do this quickly. I'll scrape them off his hands and be done with it."

Rodney still had not let go of her. "Rodney, I'll be fine." She raised one hand and put it over his hand holding her arm.

Richards was suddenly handing his gun to Ford and taking off his tactical armor. "Put this on to be safe."

"What? That weighs like fifty pounds," she said shaking her head. Rodney released her arm and reached out taking the vest from Richards.

"Twenty-four to be exact," Dwayne said.

"Turn around," Rodney ordered as he held the vest out for her to put on.

"John?" Jennifer looked at Sheppard who realized a long time ago that he had lost a handle on this situation.

"Just humor them. It can't hurt," John said.

"You are all acting ridiculous. I trust every one of you guys to keep me safe." Jennifer really meant what she said and it allowed a calm to settle over her. Rodney was putting the vest on and turned her back around to zip it up. As his hands brushed over her chest, she felt a blush rise up her cheeks. Looking at the man in front of her, she saw he did not seem to notice, as he was fixated with adjusting straps.

"There. Now I'll take a hand gun if you don't mind Sergeant Richards." Rodney turned and reached out his hand.

"What are you going to do with that?" Jennifer asked incredulously. She had been on the firing range with Rodney and he barely passed his certification.

Jennifer looked at John and shook her head. He grinned and shrugged his shoulders. "All right. Now that Doctor Keller is suited up and McKay is _armed_, we can get this party started. Bates, open the door. When we get inside, assume positions flanking the cell door. I'll deactivate the shield and open it. Ford will stun him. Jennifer will be right behind me. She'll go into the cell with Ford and I…"

"And me," Rodney added although his voice did not sound as strong as it did before.

"And McKay," John corrected. "Doc says she'll need a minute or two, so let's get this over with."

* * *

When the door to the holding room opened, Jennifer got her first real look at a live Wraith. It was twice her size as Rodney said and looked angry. She glanced at Rodney, who was close to her right side with the gun raised staring straight ahead, and Richards, who held his P90 in both hands on her left, to get a bit of courage.

_This is a stupid idea._ It was the last thought she had before darkness invaded her mind. Darkness was the only way to describe it. It blocked out her thoughts and left her feeling _violated_. A shudder went through her body as her eyes focused on the Wraith to see its never-blinking eyes staring at her. It quickly charged forward when Sheppard opened the cell.

Jennifer jumped, as did Rodney by her side. Aiden hit it with the stunner. It went down and struggled to get up, so Ford hit it again. It lay spread-eagle on the floor in front of Sheppard and Ford.

The physician was frozen to the spot. The speed it moved as it charged scared her even more than she wanted to admit. If not for her stubborn pride, she would have turned and buried herself in Rodney's arms as soon as she felt it touch her mind. She was certain the feeling had been caused by the Wraith.

"He's out," John said from inside the cell. "It's time to play with your Christmas present, Doc."

"Very funny," Jennifer said without much emotion in her voice. Glancing at Rodney who had the handgun aimed at the Wraith and his eyes glued on it, she moved into the cell. Richards and Rodney were still flanking her as her eyes took in the Wraith, dressed in a Goth-like outfit complete with floor length black _leather_ coat. Its hair was an unnatural white and skin had a greenish tint. It looked like a childhood nightmare come to life.

"He kind of looks peaceful," Aiden added.

"You're sick," Jennifer said as they moved past the Lieutenant, who had slung the stunner back over his shoulder, leaving Rodney and Richards slightly behind her. Outside the cell Bates, Stackhouse and Warrington had their P90s aimed through the bars at the fallen Wraith. Taking a deep breath and kneeling to the side of it, Jennifer set her vials and equipment down.

The attack was sudden. Neither Jennifer nor the soldiers could react immediately. It sat up, grabbed her around the neck with one hand and slammed his feeding hand into her chest. The pain was intense. Her vision blurred. Her last image was the snarling face of the Wraith with its transparent teeth bared. Her chest felt like her sternum had been broken. The weight of the battle armor dragged at her shoulders.

Jennifer felt another mind touching hers, evil, invading her thoughts. A voice told her she belonged to _him_. She tried to fight by raising her hands to the hand gripping her neck. The feel of dry flesh was under her fingers as she struggled to pry its hand away. Her vision was gone. Pain tore through her throat as her windpipe was slowly crushed, causing her to gasp for breath. The cold touch of its hand, which she could feel piercing her chest even through the body armor, caused terror to grip her.

Sounds still registered. Gunshots. Screams. _Shoot it! Stun it again! It'll hit Keller. Do it!_ Voices registered in her darkening mind, Rodney, Sheppard, Ford, Richards. Her last conscious thought was that she hoped everyone made it back to Earth alive and then an intense shock knocked her unconscious.

* * *

John did not take his eyes off the Wraith but thought it was out. He stood near its feet. When it sat up and grabbed Jennifer by the throat, slamming its feeding hand into her chest, his first thought was to shoot, but it was too close range.

"Shoot it," McKay yelled as he obviously thought the same thing. As he fired, his shots went wide, which was a good thing because the scientist might have hit Jennifer.

"Stun it again," John shouted at Ford as he reached for his knife to cut the Wraith's arm.

"It might hit Keller!" The Lieutenant said in a terrified voice.

"Do it!" Gunny Richards screamed as he ran to Jennifer. His fear of hurting the doctor kept him from using his guns as well, so he pulled his knife.

* * *

When the stun blast hit Jennifer and the Wraith, Rodney joined Richards and Sheppard kneeling next to them. The doctor was still clutched in the Wraith's grip, so she fell onto its chest. Rodney slid an arm around her waist pulling her off the creature.

"Get it off her," he cried. His voice sounded foreign to his ears. He was quite certain there were tears leaking out of his eyes. A fear unlike any the scientist had felt before gripped his heart when the Wraith grabbed Jennifer.

"Shoot it," he had yelled as he started firing wildly with the Beretta. He was not aiming at the Wraith for fear of hitting Jennifer, but he had to do something.

John stabbed the Wraith's arm and pried it off her neck. Rodney pulled her into his arms cradling her on his lap as he kneeled on the cell floor. She appeared so small that his heart ached. Her neck was already turning black and blue on the sides where it had gripped her and pinpricks of blood could be seen where its claws dug in.

He heard someone calling the infirmary. Rodney shifted Jennifer in his arms. Richards was saying something, but he could not hear because of the blood pounding through his ears. The older man reached over Jennifer's chest to open the zipper and clasps on the body armor. Realizing that they needed to make sure the Wraith did not start feeding on her through the armor, Rodney pulled a shaking hand from under her knees to help the Sergeant peal it off.

Once removed, Richards pulled the zipper down on her jacket and pulled her t-shirt up. Realizing the soldiers would see Jennifer clad in a bra caused a wave of protectiveness to wash over Rodney. He leaned over her to shield her from too many prying eyes.

She was wearing a dark blue sports bra and there were no bloody marks on her chest. Black and blue patches were forming where the armor impacted her breastbone, however.

"He didn't start feeding," Richards said with a sigh of relief that was echoed from around the room.

"Let's get her to the infirmary!" Sheppard yelled. "Bates, deal with the Wraith."

After Richards pulled her shirt back down, Rodney scooped her up and stood.

"I'll take her, Doctor," Dwayne offered, but Rodney only shook his head.

_No one is going to be responsible for her safety any longer but me._ If he could quench the fear still flowing through his veins, his anger would have provided him enough strength to knock out every man in the room if they got in his way. "I got her."

Rodney vaguely heard men calling Control to tell them to get Carson off Hoff and then the infirmary to inform them of Jennifer's condition. A stunner at close range plus the near strangulation were situations that required immediate attention.

Time seemed to move too slowly for Rodney. It seemed he was looking at the peaceful face in his arms for hours. Her hair was coming out of its binding to hang down over his arm. He had her head resting against his shoulder and without thinking; he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. _I'm sorry, Jennifer. I should have made you stop. I'm so sorry._ The physicist could not get the feeling that he failed her out of his mind.

When they finally got to the infirmary, Amanda Cole and several doctors, who were visibly shaken, led them to the private room in the back where she was after the incident on M7G677.

"Put her down Doctor McKay," Amanda said as she laid a hand on Rodney's arm.

"But she's still unconscious," Rodney's mind was still stuck back in the cell with the horrible image of the near death of Jennifer.

"I know. She's probably paralyzed like you were by the stunner. Please let us treat her." The Air Force doctor was trying to speak calmly, but failed as her voice cracked.

"Her throat. It was strangling her. We tried to get it off as quick as we could, but it was too strong." Rodney was beginning to let his panic out and began to ramble as he set her gently on the bed, stroking her hair before stepping back. "Sheppard stabbed it. What if it held on too long? What if she has brain damage? What if it can feed another way?"

"Doctor McKay," the voice of Richards permeated his near hysterical mind. "They will check for all those things. We need to let them work. You can see her when they're done."

The bigger, stronger man plus Sheppard took an arm of the scientist and steered him out of the room. As soon as Rodney realized John Sheppard was next to him, the rage he felt initially at this entire situation boiled over. "Outside. Now."

He yanked his arm from John's grip and marched out of the infirmary. He heard the sound of Carson coming up the corridor from the other direction screaming questions. Allowing himself a moment of relief at the sound of the Scotsman, who was the only doctor besides Jennifer that he trusted, the angry man got his bearings. There was a balcony up ahead, so he headed that way.

* * *

Gunny Richards was angrier than ever as well. He was mad that he allowed this to happen and angry that he was duty-bound to prevent McKay from slugging his CO, something he would have done if he were not a proud Marine.

Rodney waited until John was through the door then swung his right fist with all his might hoping to get in one punch before the soldier beat him senseless. His fist slammed into the hand of Sergeant Richards, however.

"I'm sorry, Doctor McKay, but I can't let you hit my commanding officer," Richards said it as if it was an apology. It was obvious by his eyes that he felt Rodney had every right to hit his CO.

**TBC

* * *

**** A/N: The second part should be up in a few days. For any other chemists out there, threw out Mendeleev (19th century) chemist to give you a chuckle. Not a lot of chemistry humor out there :-)  
**


	12. Poisoning the Well Part 2

**MGM owns all characters.**

**Thanks HalCooper and scr1tno for beta work. Thank you to all the reviewers.**

* * *

Richards finally released McKay's hand.

"Listen…" Sheppard started, but was cut off by his teammate.

"No! You listen," Rodney stepped back and shook a finger at John as he started to pace. Richards kept himself between the Major and the scientist. "When are you going to start using the head above your shoulders and not…"

"All right. I've let this go on far too long. I'm only going to say this once," Sheppard shouted, interrupting Rodney, because he did not want to hear another lecture about what a _ladies' man_ he was. The astrophysicist was his teammate; they _had_ to get along and had been doing a pretty good job of it so far. _I can't let this come between us._ "It's obvious you have a crush on her, so I _can_ tell you that I _do not have_ romantic or sexual feelings for Jennifer. She's the little sister I never had."

Rodney had been opening and closing his mouth trying to cut into John's confession, but he stopped.

"As for what just happened, that Wraith was going to attack whoever went in there. If not Jennifer, then one of my men or another doctor. If she were not there, I wouldn't have called Richards. No one would have had battle armor on, so that person would have died or been in a real bad state right now. I do _know_ Jennifer and she would not have wanted someone else to get hurt," John explained.

"If she didn't put on the vest…" Rodney started as the thought that she could have gone in with no protection registered with him. He turned to look into the grey eyes of Sergeant Richards silently thanking the man.

"You can't dwell on it, Doctor McKay," Richards said. "She ended up wearing it and it saved her. You'll drive yourself crazy if you think of what could have happened."

"She might have been killed." Rodney had stopped moving and repeated the thought. _Jennifer, killed?_ A cold unlike any he had ever felt closed around his heart. His chest ached again as it had in the cell. The thought of Atlantis or his life without the smiling, laughing Jennifer Keller in it seemed like a lonely place.

"That's how things work on a team, Rodney. Someone always has your back. Whether you or Carson like it or not, Jennifer is part of this team. She is aware of the risks out here. I'm letting her learn her strengths and weaknesses. It's what a _friend_ does." He said emphasizing the word friend. The Major was trying not to yell too loudly because part of his anger _was_ self-directed. He did let his feelings for Jennifer get in the way because he knew she was feeling smothered by Carson and Rodney and wanted to let her prove herself. _It was obviously the wrong decision._

"We should get back to find out the latest information from Doctor Beckett. I saw him arriving," Richards said as he stepped away from the teammates. Rodney and John stood looking at each other from several feet apart. The physicist had his arms crossed and a look of controlled panic on his face, while the pilot had an apologetic look on his. They appeared an unlikely set of teammates and even more unlikely to be friends, the nerd and the cool jock. There was a commonality between them, the fact that neither was good at following orders or refraining from risk taking were big parts of it. Dwayne had seen it so many times in his career; two unlikely people become the best of friends; Daniel Jackson and General Jack O'Neill came to mind.

Rodney realized that John was fundamentally right. The Wraith would have attacked anyone, but would not let go of the anger just yet. The anger kept the other emotions at bay. The ones that truly terrified the arrogant man: concern and fear for another, protectiveness and something else he could not name, but felt more strongly every day he spent with the young doctor. Shaking his head, he turned and headed back to the infirmary.

* * *

Jennifer's first awareness was sounds. A _tap-tap-tap-tap_ sounded from her right. It came and went, so she could not identify its source. She heard voices near her feet and recognized the distinct accents of Radek Zelenka and Peter Grodin. Concentrating harder she could hear their conversation with two others.

"I fold. I think that's the tenth time one of the scientists won," Stackhouse said.

"I give up," Aiden Ford said.

"You two do realize you are playing against engineers? As in people who are _really_ good at math?" Sheppard's voice could be heard from her left.

"So?" Stackhouse said.

"Have you ever heard of counting cards?" Richards' voice sounded from further away, but also in the direction of her feet.

"That's cheating?" An outraged Ford said.

Laughter from near her right ear caused her to turn her head that way_. Rodney? He's next to me._

"Only if you get caught," Rodney said as she heard clothing rustling and a chair scraping the floor. The _tap-tap-tap_ started again.

Sensations started to register next in her brain, which felt like a heavy wool blanket had been stuffed inside her head. Her body was numb and cold. Attempting to take a deep breath caused the pain in her chest to intensify. The physician knew something had caused the pain, but could not quite put her finger on it. The fuzziness would not leave her head. _Why can't I remember?_ Trying to move her hands, she felt something tugging on her left hand.

Realizing she needed to see what was going on around her, she slowly opened her eyelids. Bright lights could be seen in the distance, but near her bed, they were dim. As things came into focus, she saw the back of someone's head near her own. Broad shoulders covered with a blue shirt appeared to be inches from her pillow. It must be Rodney leaning against her bed. _Why is he here_?

"Never play poker with geniuses," Sheppard said from her left. "You know these infirmary beds are pretty comfy. I guess the SGC spared no expense."

"Please," Rodney moaned. "My back takes a week to get back in shape after sleeping here."

"You just need to work out more. Condition your body. You scientists are all too soft," Ford said.

"Just for that, I will not share the candy I just stole from you," Radek said.

"So you admit you cheated," Stackhouse said.

"A sucker is born every day," Richards said from across the room.

_Why are all those guys __**and**__ Rodney sitting in the infirmary with me?_ Her head would not move much for her to look around the room, but she did make out Richards sitting on a bed reading a book across the room from her. He lifted is head after he spoke and their eyes connected.

"This is Richards to Doctor Beckett. Jennifer's awake," he said as his hand lowered from touching his radio.

"Jennifer," Rodney jumped up, tossing his laptop on the bed next to hers and turned quickly capturing her right hand between his.

His hands were so warm that the contact stunned her and caused her to gasp, an action that caused pain in her throat and chest. She groaned and squeezed Rodney's hand.

"You're still stunned like me… before Christmas. It's been about six hours, so it should be wearing off, but you got hit pretty close. Carson thinks it could take longer to recover from than mine," Rodney said in his _fast_ voice that he used when he was really nervous.

_Stunned? How did I…_ As if the blanket was removed from her mind, images came back to her. Pointed teeth. Claws. Green skin and white hair. Screams. Gunshots. Pain. The on slot of images caused her to close her eyes and squeeze Rodney's hand tighter.

"Jennifer. What's wrong?" Rodney said in a panicky voice.

"Jennifer?" John stood next to her left side and touched her arm. There was an IV coming from her left hand, which had caused the tugging sensations.

"Hu-Hurts," she whispered. Trying to make her voice louder only caused pain so she settled on a whisper.

"Where?" Rodney was leaning over her. He removed one of his hands from enclosing hers and reached out to touch her face, turning her so she faced him.

"Throat. Chest," she managed to get out. The feel of Rodney's hand on her face sent sensations through her. Seeing the intensity of his blue eyes and the concern on his face made her want to crawl into his arms. The images coalesced in her brain reminding her of the Wraith attack. Tears welled up in her eyes and began to leak out the corners. She was powerless to stop them. Glancing around she saw everyone close to her bed.

"Okay. Everyone out." Carson entered the infirmary and started shooing the soldiers and scientists out.

Rodney made no move to leave. He actually sat on the bed next to her and started wiping the tears away with his fingers. The kind act by the usually insensitive man made even more tears come. John squeezed her arm reassuringly and also made no move to leave.

"Gentlemen. Please. Let me examine my patient," Carson said in a softer voice than he used to get rid of the others. He knew these two men cared for Jennifer a great deal and was still amazed by the story he had been told. After his horror at Jennifer's attack and anger at Sheppard, he was stunned to hear that Rodney went into the cell with her and then carried her to the infirmary. Everyone thought he slugged Sheppard, too, but no one saw that.

The doctor focused only on his friend and patient, shutting out his own sense of guilt at not staying to get the samples himself. The journey from Hoff took ten minutes, but felt like an eternity to Carson as his only thought was of returning to Jennifer.

"We're not going anywhere so deal with it, Carson," Rodney said continuing to hold Jennifer's hand. _Please be okay._ "Jennifer. You're safe. Nothing is going to hurt you."

"I… It… If I didn't… the vest." Jennifer was trying to speak but her throat was not cooperating, so she could speak in little more than a whisper.

"Jennifer. The vest saved you, so don't think about it again," John said firmly as her eyes connected with his hazel ones. "You can drive yourself mad second-guessing everything. The important thing is that you are safe."

"But…" Jennifer tried to speak.

"Trust me. I've been through this. You must let it go." John leaned close and stared into her eyes trying to force her to understand.

"I mean it. I need you two to leave for a little while," Carson said in his _doctor_ voice.

John glanced at Rodney, who could not take his eyes off Jennifer, and said, "Jennifer, I bet you're hungry. Rodney and I will get you some food."

Jennifer nodded and looked at Rodney squeezing his hand. She did not really want the physicist to go, but she needed to sob uncontrollably and knew he would not be able to handle it. Trying to stay calm, she muttered, "Thanks."

"I'll get something easy for you to eat. Since your throat is probably sore," he said smiling and reluctantly let go of her hand as he slid off the bed.

Carson moved close and appeared to have tears in his blue eyes. Once the other men left, Jennifer started to sob as the enormity of her near death came crashing down around her. Her old friend sat on the bed and pulled her into his arms, rocking her gently. Sobbing exacerbated the pain in her chest and throat, but crying on Carson's shoulder helped her emotional trauma.

* * *

The next four days passed in a blur for Jennifer. She slept a lot from the painkillers that Carson made her take. Having refused to talk to Doctor Heightmeyer and most of her friends, she occupied her waking time with reading Carson's progress reports from Hoff, watching movies and waiting for Rodney to join her at dinner and breakfast.

The physicist joined her like clockwork each morning for breakfast where he would ask how she slept. He was so upset after the first night when Jennifer said she had not slept well that he went to Doctor Weir demanding Carson be called back from Hoff. After assuring Elizabeth and Amanda that she was fine, it was only Rodney overreacting, she refrained from telling him that she awoke with her sheets wet and a cry on her lips once the pain medication wore off each night. Forcing a smile and saying she slept well would placate the scientist until he returned at dinnertime to update her on the happenings in the city. He seemed to be cheerful and tried to take care of her needs. Rodney set up her computer on a special cart with a large monitor to watch movies and improved the speed for data analysis of Carson's data, but Jennifer _felt_ something was wrong.

The medical staff told her how he carried her from the holding cell and would not leave the infirmary until she had fully regained consciousness. The look of tenderness on his face from that evening stayed with her and she used it to drive the terror away.

Radek, Peter and Isabelle Dumais said he seemed to work every hour except when he visited her. If Jennifer brought up anything related to her attack, he quickly changed the subject as an expression she could not identify crossed his face. Since reading him had been so easy, the fact that she could not figure out his problem really troubled the medical genius.

The sound of silverware on a plate woke her from her light sleep. Shaking her head and rubbing her eyes to push the sleep away, she saw the smiling face of her breakfast companion. It was a forced smile and did not reach his eyes.

"What's wrong, Rodney?" She sat up in the bed. Their friendship was almost six months old and she _knew_ when he was hiding something.

"Nothing. I… uh… I'm fighting with a device. That's all. Can't figure out what it does. According to the database, it has to do with power monitoring. We've been losing power in the tower with the chair platform. Can't have that." Rodney shoveled eggs into his mouth to stop rambling.

"Rodney McKay, you should know that you can't lie to me." Jennifer spoke with her doctor voice, but it only came out in a loud whisper. If she spoke too loudly, her throat still hurt.

An audible swallow came from Rodney as he looked like he got caught doing something wrong. Shifting uncomfortably in his chair, he stared at his plate and looked like he had some bad news, but did not want to share it.

"Are you going to tell me or do I have to force it out of you? Don't forget, I know your little secret." Jennifer smiled and tried to sound threatening with a whisper.

"What secret?" Rodney looked concerned. _What did Jennifer know? Did Richards or Sheppard tell her I didn't deny I had a crush on her?_

"You know," she said with a wider smile now.

Jennifer suddenly felt happier than she had been for days. This was the first relatively normal conversation she had with Rodney. He did not start the morning conversation with a hundred questions about her health, which meant something else was going on. Since he was obviously not going to tell her, she needed to shock it out of him.

_

* * *

At least she's smiling again. It doesn't matter what she knows as long as she keeps smiling._ "I have no secrets that I've shared with you, so you're bluffing."

"Come a little closer and I'll tell you." Jennifer had a mischievous look.

_She's feeling better. No way I can tell her what they're doing with that Wraith._

"I am a busy man and don't have time for games." He looked sternly at her, but moved closer to the bed. She was ready to be discharged later today, so she did not have IVs or monitors attached to her any longer. Rodney had planned on coming back at lunchtime and getting her settled in her quarters where he made some modifications that he hoped she would like.

As Rodney leaned closer, to listen to her tell him a secret. She turned like she was going to whisper in his ear and then she struck. Her hand connected with his stomach, tickling him. He jumped back causing the chair to wobble and fall over with him on it.

"Rodney!" Jennifer yelled trying to get up, which caused to to groan in pain.

"Jennifer!" Rodney jumped back up red-faced and breathing hard. He had fallen into the bed next to hers and caught himself before he fell to the floor with the chair.

"What's going on in here?" Marie ran in seeing the chair on the floor and Jennifer and Rodney red-faced.

"I…Ah… Uh… Fell… Over in the chair. I'm fine. Everything's fine here." Rodney stammered and tried to get control over his body. He pulled up the chair and glared at Jennifer once Marie turned to leave.

"Sorry, but you left me no choice. Something's going on and you won't tell me." Jennifer crossed her arms and looked sternly at him.

"That was rotten. What if I cracked my skull on the bed or the floor? How would you have explained that to Elizabeth? Scaring the smartest man here to death." Rodney sat some distance away from the bed.

"Death by tickling?" Jennifer said and suddenly all the humor left her.

Rodney instantly saw the change on Jennifer's face and regretted his whining. _She was trying to lighten things up for the first time in days. Now she's thinking about her near death. _

"Jennifer," he said standing close to the bed and taking her hand in his. Her small hand fit so well, he found he had to hold it as often as he could lately. "I've almost died three times already. You have to let it go. I know it's terrifying and if I let myself think about it, I'll go insane."

"I know. I… It's just…" Jennifer tried to say as tears welled up in her eyes.

"I'm sorry I overreacted. I'm going to have to learn a secret of yours, so I can use it against you, too." Rodney squeezed her hand, trying to smile and reluctantly let it go.

Realizing she would find out sooner or later and wanting to be the one to share it with her, he pulled his chair back close to the bed. Taking a deep breath to calm his racing heart and rid him of the flash of desire that formed when her hand touched his stomach, he continued, "Okay. You'll hear about it soon enough. The Hoffans want the Wraith for some experiments."

"Oh no. They saw that the simulations worked and want to…" Jennifer's expression told him that his intelligent friend knew exactly what experiment they wanted to run.

Her face paled and she clutched the blanket with her hands. He quickly slid his hand back under the small table and pulled her cold one into his once more. No matter how hard he tried to distance himself from this woman, he could not. The desire to touch her was so strong; he had to give into it once in a while. _At least she does not seem to mind._ "Weir agreed and Sheppard, Ford, Richards and the other big guy always around Richards... Worthington?"

"Warrington," Jennifer corrected. "How can they do this? Feeding a person to a Wraith?"

"The person is terminally ill. He's going to die and wants to save others."

"And if it doesn't work? Or only works partially? He'll have the most horrific…" Jennifer stopped when she realized she was crushing Rodney's hand. He did not say anything, but his cringing face gave it away, so she let go. "Sorry."

"That's okay. I knew you'd be upset. It's why I didn't want to say anything."

"Weir agreed?" Jennifer was shocked.

"Yeah. Carson's pretty upset about it, too." Rodney had overheard Sheppard telling Amanda that Carson was trying to talk the patient and the Hoffan, Perna, out of it.

"He should be. Doctor's aren't supposed to do any harm. I realize we live in a different galaxy now, but I can't believe anyone would take care of sick people and then want to kill one. Feeding a dying person to a Wraith is murder." Jennifer's expression showed her disbelief. "Is Carson still there?"

"Yes, I think he's trying to talk them out of it, but they were off a while ago." Silence settled over them once again, so Rodney rose putting an extra fruit cup on her tray. "I need to get some work done this morning and will be back when they release you at lunchtime."

"Thank you, Rodney. For everything. They told me how you carried me out of the cell all the way to the infirmary," Jennifer said staring into his blue eyes. "I… I wouldn't…"

"Jennifer. Stop thinking about what could have happened. Please promise me we won't have this conversation again?" Rodney stepped back and leaned over her. "Promise me?"

"I promise I won't discuss this with you again," Jennifer said with some attitude behind her whispering voice.

"I want you to promise you won't think it again," Rodney said as he crossed his arms and stood close to the bed. Every time she thought about the attack, he saw terror in her eyes. It was something he would have given everything he had to erase from her.

"How would you make sure I didn't think it?" Jennifer asked.

"I think I could torture it out of you," Rodney said with a sly grin forming on his face. He was desperate to see the laughter and the happiness back on her face. Trying as hard as he could to think of better times, he tried to tease her.

"What does that mean?" Jennifer looked at him with a furrowed brow.

"It means that I know you're ticklish on your feet. I saw Carson check you the first day to see if the stunner blast wore off." Rodney grinned and turned to leave.

Jennifer smiled and attempted to laugh, but only groaned in pain because her chest and throat still hurt.

* * *

At lunchtime, Peter Grodin and Radek Zelenka showed up looking slightly unnerved.

"Hi guys," Jennifer said in her whisper-like voice. "What are you doing here?"

"Rodney called us to get you for lunch and get you settled back in your quarters," Peter said as he grabbed the overnight bag she had on the infirmary bed.

"He was called into a meeting," Radek said.

"Oh. Did the Hoffans go through with their…test?" Jennifer asked with obvious distaste in her mouth.

"We believe so, but I haven't been in the control room for several hours and missed the check-ins," Peter said turning to leave the infirmary.

"You know this is not necessary, I can find my own quarters," she said somewhat annoyed that Rodney would send them to walk her down the corridor and to the mess hall. As she started walking, she felt tightness in her chest and it caused her to slow down.

"Jennifer, are you all right," Radek asked with concern in his voice.

"Yes, I need to take it slow," Jennifer said smiling at her friends.

"Maybe you should stay another…" Peter started.

"Absolutely not. I am sick of being in there. I never want to be a patient in my own infirmary again," Jennifer said with as much conviction as she could with a loud whispery voice. "Please, either get me to my quarters or let me go on my own."

The two engineers glanced at each other behind the young doctor's back. They knew Rodney would kill them if she was not okay and they let her go alone.

The two men left Jennifer at her quarters after she threatened to give them shots the next time they were in the infirmary because they were hovering. Once Jennifer got inside, her annoyance with Rodney was gone. He had somehow usurped a large monitor screen to set up in her quarters to play the multitude of movies they brought. A smile spread over her face and she felt a strange urge to find him and hug him. Feeling very tired from the walk down the corridor, Jennifer lay on her couch looking at the remote control console that Rodney left on the table for her to use. After a few minutes, she had a movie selected from her digital library and soon fell asleep to _The Sound of Music_.

* * *

Rodney was not happy to have to get Jennifer and bring her to the briefing, but he did not want to have someone else get her. Grodin and Zelenka said she was very tired by the time she made it to her quarters and did not join them for lunch. _Dammit, I knew she was not ready to leave the infirmary. She is the most stubborn person I ever met._ Rodney banged on her door and when she did not answer, he used his master override.

When he entered her quarters, he heard the theme from The Sound of Music playing and saw the movie credits rolling on the big screen he installed for her to watch movies on. He was hoping to watch them as well in a more comfortable setting than the mess hall or conference room.

"Jennifer," he said as he approached her sleeping form on the couch. "Jennifer."

"Hhmm, Rodney," she said as she shifted, but did not appear to wake up.

"Jennifer," Rodney walked over to her. He did not want to wake her, but knew she needed to hear the latest update from Doctor Weir. Reaching out to touch her shoulder, terrified of startling her, he gently stroked her arm and said her name again.

She looked exhausted. Her face did not have all the color is used to and she still had horrible claw marks on her neck. Swallowing the anger he felt every time he saw them, he shook her shoulder slightly.

"Rodney," she said in a whisper.

"Jennifer, you need to wake up. There is news from Hoff and Doctor Weir would like you to join us in the conference room. I told her I thought you…"

"Rodney!" Jennifer suddenly sat up, causing pain in her chest. Gasping, her hand moved to her chest instinctively.

"I knew they shouldn't have released you. You're still hurt. We never should have sent Carson to that crazy planet." Rodney quickly slid an arm around her back. "I'm calling Elizabeth and telling her…"

"No. I want to go. I sat up quickly. I'm okay now." Jennifer had thought she was dreaming that Rodney was in the room with her, but he was really there. Looking into his concerned face, she tried to smile to reassure him. "You startled me. Really, let's go."

Rodney released her from his hold and stood back offering his hand to help her up. It reminded Jennifer of a gallant knight helping his fair lady up from her throne and made her smile some more. She slept without any bad dreams for the first time since her attack happened. _It must be my quarters and Rodney's gift._

* * *

The two geniuses arrived at the conference room where Sheppard was waiting, having returned from Hoff, to brief them on what occurred.

When the Major saw Jennifer's pale appearance, he quickly glanced at McKay, who shook his head in an annoyed fashion. It was obvious he did not want Jennifer to be there, but Carson told him to make sure she was briefed even if she was in the infirmary.

"The Hoffans tested their treatment on the Wraith, Steve, and he could not feed upon the patient, after the patient took the drug. It was apparently only two hours after his dosing and the… experiment," John tried to choose his words carefully, watching Jennifer's face. He saw outrage and disgust along with fear and sadness reflected in her brown eyes. Nodding in agreement and sympathy, he continued. "The Hoffans believe this proves their drug works and is mass producing it to start inoculating their people."

"What? After one test? On a terminally ill patient? Maybe the Wraith don't feed on the sick and dying. We have no way of knowing what was going on with the Wraith," Jennifer said as loudly as her voice would allow her.

"Jennifer, calm down. I know…" Rodney began concern for her showing plainly for all in the room to see.

"You don't know, Rodney. The Wraith gets into your mind. It's like he can see _everything_," Jennifer said loudly. Tears were in her eyes. It was obvious she was reliving her experience.

"Jennifer," John got up and walked around the table to her. "I told Carson this was not a good idea. I knew it would upset you, but he wanted you to know."

"No, I'm sorry. It's just. Doctor Weir, I'm sorry for my outburst." Jennifer realized she had been silly to get mad. _There was nothing she or, apparently Carson, could do._

"It's perfectly understandable Doctor. However, we cannot tell these people how to run their society. I do believe, however, that should they continue to act so recklessly, we might need to break off our relations with them," Elizabeth said looking at John.

"I agree and there's more," John said as he sat next to Jennifer, who had regained her composure.

"I have a feeling, this is not good news," Elizabeth said leaning forward over the table.

"The Wraith died." John looked back to Jennifer.

"What?" Jennifer said. Her mind was racing. _It killed the Wraith?_

"Carson is doing the autopsy and is going to send the data through as soon as he can. He wants you to take a look at it," John said.

"Was the Hoffan protein in the Wraith's blood?" Jennifer realized the Major would have no idea and halted further questions.

"No idea, but I'll get the data to you as soon as I can," Sheppard said.

"You realize the Wraith will destroy their planet if they find out about this. They won't care if they can feed on them or not. They'll just destroy them," Rodney added looking at the others.

"I agree, but the chancellor does not seem concerned," John added causing a look of shock to appear on Weir's face.

"Does not care that his people could all be killed?" Weir asked.

"They are voting if they wish to inoculate everyone or not already," John added.

The four people in the room sat in silence collecting their thoughts.

"Very well," Elizabeth said. "Sheppard, return to Hoff and see if you can reason with them. If this protein did indeed kill the Wraith, we know they will not allow Hoff to survive if they find out about it. We will need to pay close attention in case we need to pull out quickly. I do not want our people getting caught up in a Wraith attack if it should come."

"We're going to leave them to die?" Jennifer asked. She knew the answer, but the scared little girl who almost died at the hands of a Wraith a few days ago, could not imagine being so cruel to people.

"We just don't have the resources, Doctor Keller. I don't want to think about abandoning an entire society, either, but this is their choice. I know Teyla, Doctor Beckett and Major Sheppard have done all they can to change their minds," Elizabeth explained looking apologetic.

"I know. I just… this whole situation turned into a giant nightmare pretty quickly," Jennifer could not keep a sense of guilt out of this. _Perhaps I should have called Carson on his obsession earlier?_

"Agreed. Major, head back and report any news you have," Weir looked back to Sheppard.

"Understood," John said and they all rose to leave.

"Doctor Keller, do you have a moment?" Elizabeth said looking up with a smile at Jennifer.

"Of course, Doctor Weir." Jennifer glanced at Rodney and John at the door, shooting them a concerned glance and then sat back down. She had not had many conversations alone with Elizabeth Weir, almost none, and was intimidated by the leader. The things she had accomplished in her life were staggering to the young doctor.

* * *

"Doctor Keller, I understand that you refused to see Doctor Heightmeyer." Elizabeth did not ask. She offered it as a statement.

"I don't believe I need to see her, Doctor Weir," Jennifer looked surprised.

"It's your choice, of course. I could order you to, but I won't. For now. I wanted you to know that I am being kept informed of your recovery. I know I only visited you once in the infirmary and I hope you didn't take that to mean a lack of concern on my part," Elizabeth said.

"I didn't think that at all, Doctor Weir. Everyone else has been taking turns keeping me company. I just…" Jennifer paused.

"Go on," Elizabeth leaned forward and looked intently at her.

"I feel like such an idiot. I never should have gone in there," Jennifer said shaking her head and looking at the table.

"Major Sheppard thinks if you did not go, one of his men would have been killed. My understanding is that Sergeant Richards made you wear his vest. He would not have done that for a fellow Marine. Don't be too hard on yourself, Doctor Keller. You need to stand by your choice even if the outcome was not what you thought it would be. Second-guessing is the last thing we can do out here." Elizabeth sat back with a knowing smile.

"I know. It's the first time I've had a decision go so badly." Jennifer admitted. "Boy, that sounds pretty arrogant. Like I'm a _perfect_ know-it-all."

"I have known Rodney McKay for a few years. He is a _perfect know-it-all_ and you sound nothing like him." Elizabeth's laughter caused Jennifer to join in until she touched her chest and moaned slightly.

"Are you all right?" Elizabeth rose and walked over to the young woman. The doctor was incredibly pale and looked to still be in pain.

"I'm fine. I need to rest and not laugh for a while," Jennifer smiled.

Elizabeth sat next to her to see her more closely. "You're really all right?"

"I had been feeling… sheltered is the best word I can come up with and it made me do stupid things," Jennifer confessed looking down.

"By who?" Elizabeth felt she knew the answer, but wanted to hear it from the young woman seated in front of her. She realized, she had wanted to hold Jennifer back before as well. _It was something about the innocence that surrounded her._ This was someone who grew up with a loving father, excelled at everything she touched on Earth and was taken away from a comfortable life of academic excellent into a place where death was literally through the next door. Doctor Weir knew everyone made a decision to come and suddenly wondered why Jennifer changed her mind and joined them.

"Carson and Rodney," Jennifer answered Weirs' question after a few moments. The way she hung her head and would not look Elizabeth in the eye, made the older woman feel like Jennifer was a student called to her office to tattle on her friends.

"I figured as much. The three of you are great friends. Everyone can see that. I must admit; you make an odd bunch. You seemed to be the mediator early on, but now they seem to be ganging up on _you_," Elizabeth said as a flush of color finally filling the younger woman's face. She obviously hit on how Jennifer had been feeling.

"Exactly. I think I did this just to prove I'm capable. They begged me to come and even got your permission to tell my father about the program and now they act like I'm going to break." Jennifer crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back very much like a pouting child.

"I never gave permission to tell your father," Elizabeth said with some confusion. _What did they do?_

"My Dad signed a bunch of forms that Rodney had. He said he got them from General O'Neill. I just thought you agreed to it, too." Jennifer again looked like she got her friends in trouble.

"Not surprising. McKay goes back with O'Neill," Elizabeth smiled. _Wow, McKay really wanted her to come along._ As she looked at the young woman, who once appeared very confident, and saw the self-doubt on her face now, she knew she had to do something about it. Elizabeth was well aware of Jennifer's involvement in the organization of the personnel during the initial few days and the infirmary set up. Carson had confessed that he forgot all about that once the Wraith arm got here. "I know the desire to prove yourself can drive you to some crazy things. I will share my mistakes with you at some point."

Jennifer smiled at her, "I bet yours do not involve life-sucking space vampires."

Elizabeth laughed. Jennifer had a way to say the most ridiculous things at the right moment to break tension and lighten a situation.

"No they don't. I should not tell you what I am going to, but I think you need to know how respected and admired you are on this expedition and I would like to put that acceptance by all to use if you would indulge me?" Elizabeth asked.

"Okay?" Jennifer responded obviously confused by her furrowed brow.

"All the members of my senior team do nothing but sing your praises. Carson is your boss and you know he can never stop talking about how great you are."

Jennifer continued to have the red tinge on her cheeks and avert her eyes. It was obvious she did not feel comfortable getting praise. _She could learn a thing or two from McKay about that._ "Teyla has basically made you the official Athosian ambassador from Earth."

"I love her people. They are so proud and strong, yet simplistic in their ways." Jennifer smiled more brightly.

"The next two things I doubt you know, but I will tell you anyways. John originally fought with me to have you put on his Gate team." Elizabeth stopped as she watched Jennifer's jaw drop. "It's true. My real concern was that no one from the SGC would be on the lead team other than Ford and he had a couple years of experience only. When Rodney got the ATA gene and showed Sheppard how brave he could be with the energy being, the Major accepted him."

"I… I'm… I'm in shock," Jennifer looked dumbfounded at her.

"And the final praise I am going to give you comes from the most unlikely source imaginable, Rodney McKay. Not a week goes by when he is not asking me to force Carson to transfer you to his department." Elizabeth stopped, expecting shock and not being let down by the young woman.

"He doesn't!"

"Yes. At our Thursday lunch. I try to have lunch once a week with my senior leaders. Sunday is Teyla, Tuesday is Carson, Wednesday is John and Thursday is Rodney," she explained.

"I thought he was joking," Jennifer said.

"He told you?" Elizabeth was surprised. _That's not his style, since when does he care what someone else thinks? He usually sees something he wants, equipment, knowledge or personnel and tries to take it, not caring about any ramifications to others._

"He asks me on almost a weekly basis to join his department, too. It's a running joke. He'll ask if I'm going to accept his offer. I tell him the pay is too low or the hours are too long or something like that." Jennifer was looking down with a smile on her face and a blush on her cheeks. Elizabeth thought she looked like someone talking about his or her high school sweetheart. _Could there be more than friendship between these two? I thought maybe her and Sheppard, but McKay?_

"Well, if you are seriously considering it, please let me know. Carson has almost come to blows with him about it and I'm sure he'd be very angry if he knew that Rodney was asking you about it directly." Elizabeth could see that the young woman was a healthy shade of pink now. "I think I have embarrassed you enough. Now, because of the Hoffan crisis, I can't give you specifics, but I would like to talk to you as soon as we are through this about working on some special projects for me. I know you already run the infirmary and are doing some excellent research with Doctor Grodin and Zelenka, who cannot say enough wonderful things about you as well, but I would like to take advantage of the fact that you have so many excellent relationships with _all_ the departments. I have some ideas that I hope we can discuss soon."

Jennifer sat in stunned silence after Doctor Weir's last statements. She could not imagine people going to Doctor Weir and talking about how great she was. The fact that Major Sheppard seriously considered asking her to be on his gate team really stunned her. _Me, on a gate team? What were you thinking, John?_ "I don't know what to say. Of course, I'll work on anything you need me to. I'm quite efficient and can multi-task with the best of them."

"Uh-oh. You are getting a big ego. Absolutely no more meals with McKay," Elizabeth said laughing.

Jennifer smiled.

* * *

Jennifer was in a good mood the rest of the afternoon. When it was time for dinner, she arrived in the mess hall when she always did and did not see Rodney. Grabbing a tray and some food, she sat with Miko, Pamela Simpson and Isabelle Dumais. Brendan Gaul and Radek joined them after a short time. The Hoffan situation was the topic of discussion, but no one seemed to want to mention the Wraith. Jennifer got the impression they were _walking on eggshells_ around her. It was understandable, but coupled with the mood Rodney seemed to be in lately, it left her unsettled when she went back to her quarters. She thought of calling Rodney on the radio, but something in the back of her mind said to let it go, it seemed too childish. _We don't have a set schedule; we just always happened to meet for meals. _Her happiness and excitement for earlier had faded. Jennifer wanted to talk to Rodney about what Elizabeth told her and get his opinions, but he was not around.

She felt slightly better when she got to her quarters and saw a small note shoved under her door. _Sorry, not around for dinner. Working late as usual, Rodney. _The idea he took time to slip a note under her door surprised her. _Why didn't he radio, though?_

* * *

The next morning as she made her way to the mess hall, she saw Rodney coming up the corridor in the other direction. He looked like he had not slept at all the night before. It also looked like he just left the lab. His shirt was wrinkled and he had a five-o'clock shadow, which he got if he had not shaved for a couple of days. _What's wrong with him?_ "Good morning, Rodney."

The physicist jumped because he was obviously so lost in his own thoughts that he did not see her standing outside the mess hall door. "Oh, good morning Jennifer. How are you feeling this morning?"

"I'm fine. How are you? You look like you didn't get much sleep and your razor broke," she said trying to keep it light and funny. Her concern was hard to keep down. Rodney was too important to her not to help him with this problem, whatever it might be.

"Huh, oh, sorry. Wrapped up in something and fell asleep in the lab. My back is killing me," Rodney said stretching a little and following her into the mess hall.

"I'm sure we can help you with that in the infirmary," Jennifer said.

"You're not back on duty, are you?" Rodney asked grabbing a tray and a package of dry cereal.

"Restricted. No patients. Only data analysis for Carson, scheduling, records management. Nothing glamorous, but all necessary. You know that. You have a large department to run," Jennifer said.

"Sure. I think Grodin or Miko take care of it or maybe Zelenka. I don't know." Rodney grabbed milk for his cereal and headed for the coffee station. Getting two cups, he set one on Jennifer's tray and took one for himself.

"You and Carson are so alike. Both absent-minded professors," Jennifer chuckled.

They sat at a table near the window and started eating when a call went over the PA, "All medical personnel, even those off duty, and any staff member with Emergency Medical Training or Advanced Medical Training, please report to the Jumper Bay immediately."

"What the hell?" Rodney looked at Jennifer in stunned shock as her radio went off.

"Doctor Keller, go ahead," Jennifer said into the radio.

"I'm sorry to call you when you are not fully fit for duty, but Carson had a desperate situation develop on Hoff overnight, people who took the vaccine are becoming ill. I'm having data sent to your computer, so please grab it on the way to the jumper bay. I'm sorry, Doctor Keller, but we need everyone and you're one of the best." Elizabeth sounded apologetic at first, but by the end, she sounded like her usual self.

"On my way, Doctor Weir." Jennifer got up.

"What's going on?" Rodney asked with his eyes widening.

"Doctor Weir just called me to say that the people on Hoff are getting sick from the vaccine. She said she's sorry to ask me, but I need to go. Carson needs me."

"Fine, but I'm going with you." Rodney grabbed his coffee cup to take with him and the package of dry cereal.

"Rodney, have you ever been in a mass casualty or pandemic situation?" Jennifer asked while walking rapidly alongside him. The adrenaline coursing through her diminished the pain in her chest from walking so fast. _Gotta grab some painkillers before I go_.

"No, but you don't have much strength to move patients around, so you'll need help," Rodney said gulping his coffee.

"You want to be around sick people? Rodney, please…"

"Jennifer, I'm going." His voice and the set of his jaw told her there was no more discussion.

"Fine. I have to get my computer to look at the initial report. I'll be in the jumper bay in fifteen minutes," Jennifer said.

"Fine," McKay turned to go to his own lab to get his jacket and computer.

* * *

When they arrived at the hospital on Hoff, it was chaos. People were lying outside on the ground or on the walkways, some of they writhing in obvious pain. Rodney guided Jennifer through the people into the hospital with a hand on her arm. It was obvious he was trying to keep her from stopping to help the first person they came across. She needed to find Carson or someone in charge and get the personnel she brought into the most useful locations instead of jumping in, so she did not resist Rodney's assistance.

"Jennifer," Teyla's voice sounded from across the crowded room in the hospital. "I hope you are feeling better."

"I'm okay. Thanks," Jennifer said as Teyla grabbed by her shoulders. The Athosian leader pressed her forehead to hers.

"I am sorry I did not visit you. Doctor Weir thought it best I remain on Hoff, so someone was here with Doctor Beckett and to talk with the Hoffans during his absence," Teyla explained as she looked over Jennifer with a critical eye. Glancing at her teammate standing close to Jennifer, she said, "Doctor McKay, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here to help Jennifer. She's not really _that_ well," Rodney stated.

"I'm fine. It only hurts when I yell or laugh." Jennifer glared at him. "Where's Carson?"

"Come with me." Teyla took the lead weaving in and out of beds, doctors and patients.

They entered what looked like an office area to find a site that caused Jennifer's eyebrows to shoot under her bangs. Carson and a beautiful blond woman were in a close embrace. To say the woman was beautiful seemed an understatement to Jennifer. _No wonder Rodney kept babbling about her. She's stunning._

The sound of Rodney clearing his throat roused Carson. Jennifer glanced at her mentor to see he had a blush on his cheeks. Carson and the woman quickly came over to their visitors.

"Jennifer, love, I'm so sorry to call you here," Carson said as he walked over to gently hug his friend. "I know you're recovering, but we need everyone."

"What's the situation?" Jennifer asked getting to business. She knew she could grill Carson about his _friend_ later.

"People, who were inoculated, are getting sick and a few have died including Merrill, the original patient. Cause of death has been a sudden respiratory breakdown in the patients we've seen so far. I don't have much data regarding percentage being affected, time to first symptoms and duration. I just haven't any bloody time to collect it, so we don't know exactly what we are dealing with," Carson said still holding Jennifer's upper arms.

"Okay, we need data and we need to deploy the folks that came with me. We have about fifteen people on the three shuttles with us. Most of them have done some type of advanced first aid and a few have emergency medical training. Where do you want us?" Jennifer asked.

Carson turned to look at the blond woman. "Perna, this is Jennifer Keller. She came from Atlantis with several others to help."

"We appreciate all that you are trying to do for us. I will have some of my staff get your people situated. The situation is unfolding too rapidly for us to stay ahead of it. We need people just to find beds and sort out the level of complications they are suffering from," Perna explained. Her voice was borderline panicking.

"Understood." Jennifer's mind was racing. _We need to know what we're dealing with. I wish I had time to collect some data._ As she glanced around the room, she caught the familiar blue eyes that always seemed to be focused on her when she was in the room. "Rodney, I need your help."

"Anything," the physicist said suddenly standing up a little straighter.

Jennifer realized she could put his skills with math and data analysis to use. "We need someone to collect the data, percent affected, time to first symptoms, time until death. Could you do it?"

"Uh… sure. I can, but…" Rodney started only to have Jennifer jump in.

"Perna, do you have someone who could work with Rodney… I mean Doctor McKay to talk to the right people to get this data?" Jennifer asked Perna.

"Yes, I do. I'll go find one of the health ministers," Perna said. She looked at Carson and smiled before she left. "I'll be back."

"Thanks." Jennifer flashed a smile at Rodney.

"But what about you? You're in no condition to treat patients," Rodney said crossing his arms and looking concerned.

"I will assist Doctor Keller," Teyla said.

"Thank you, Teyla," Jennifer said smiling. She looked into the blue eyes of her mentor and oldest friend. There was pain and sadness reflected there. His shoulders appeared to be sagging and a flash of defeat crossed his face. "Carson, we have work to do. Where do you want me?"

Her need for him to make a decision seemed to snap him out of his obvious battle with self-doubt. "We really need to autopsy Merrill and look for the protein. Doctor Biro is set up to autopsy, but she is not too skilled with the new equipment we have for protein analysis."

"Say no more, I'm on it. I'll let you know once we get something," Jennifer said. Turning to Rodney, she laid a hand on his arm and smiled before leaving.

"I will show you where Doctor Biro is," Teyla said leading the way out of the room.

Jennifer worked with the pathologist for a short time until she was able to determine that the Hoffan protein, as she called it, was concentrated in the lung tissue of Merrill, the first patient. Telling Elaine that she needed more tissue samples to test, the pathologist had several more bodies brought to the makeshift morgue area.

"Teyla, I need to find Carson and John to tell them what I found so far," she said much later in the day after testing at least a couple dozen samples.

"I'll do it. You look tired, why don't you set down for a while," Teyla said with a kind smile.

* * *

Jennifer felt exhausted, not just because of working so long on her feet after her attack, but because of the number of samples she was getting from Doctor Biro. _At least twenty-five people have died already. It's staggering. I wonder if Rodney got any data for me yet? _

As if on queue, the astrophysicist entered the office area the Lanteans were using as their staging area. Warrington, Bates, Richards and a few other Marines were crashed on the floor or on the one sofa that was in the room. Jennifer longed to lie down herself, but sat at a table reviewing her analysis of the tissue samples.

"You look awful," Rodney said when he got close to her.

"You really know how to smooth talk the ladies, don't you, McKay," Jennifer tried to smile, but her heart was not in it.

"Did you take your pain meds?" Rodney was all business in his voice. He set his laptop down next to her own and stared into her eyes.

"Not for a while." The physician said as she closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath, only to gasp because it still hurt.

When she opened her eyes, Rodney was not in front of her any longer. Feeling saddened that he left, she jumped when he touched her shoulder to hand her some painkillers and a bottle of water. "Thank you."

"Here's some food, too." Rodney set an MRE down in front of her and pulled a stool up to the table to sit next to her.

"You know, you're really good at this," Jennifer said smiling shyly at her lunch companion as she opened her MRE.

"Good at what?" Rodney asked as he dug into his own food and glanced at the soldiers, who all seemed to be sleeping. It appeared he was uncomfortable with anyone watching them eat.

Realizing his discomfort with the audience, Jennifer lowered her voice so only he could hear. "You're good at taking care of people."

A look of shock crossed Rodney's face as he started to '_Ah_' and '_Um_".

"Don't get worked up. It's just another secret I swear I won't tell anyone," Jennifer said as she smiled her first real smile in over a week. _This feels normal again._ She had no idea what had gone on during the last week with him, but she felt close to the scientist once again.

"Now I know you're not feeling well," he said glancing at the sleeping Marines.

"Why do you say that? I mean it. You are good at taking care of people because you are stubborn and won't take _no_ for a response. You force me to eat, take my medicine, get rest because you've got it in your head to watch out for me. My Dad will be grateful," Jennifer said looking into his intense blue eyes.

"Oh. Well… we needed you on the mission and your Dad was nice enough to make you come." Rodney had finished his MRE and glanced at his laptop.

Jennifer noticed immediately and suddenly realized that he must have data for her by now. "Rodney, what did you find out?"

At that moment, Carson, John and Teyla entered the room with Perna walking behind them.

"Looks like show time," Jennifer said turning to brief the others.

"Jennifer, what did you find out about those who died?" Sheppard asked going straight to the point. It was obvious that his level of comfort with this situation was long gone.

Upon hearing their CO's voice, the Marines around the room started getting up.

Jennifer glanced at them and said, "The protein was found heavily concentrated in all the patient's lung tissue. I looked at twenty-five samples and they all showed the same thing."

The physician looked at the Hoffan woman and Carson. "You must stop inoculating your population. This protein is killing them."

Perna looked at Carson and then looked down.

"Rodney, do you know what percentage is being affected?" Carson asked the physicist.

Rodney audibly swallowed and reached to boot up his laptop. He was obviously stalling.

"McKay!" Sheppard barked.

"Fifty percent," Rodney said the number closing his eyes briefly.

"What?" She and Carson said at the same time in shock.

"Fifty percent of the population is dying within seventy-two hours of inoculation." Rodney could not meet anyone's eyes.

Silence permeated the room and then the Major turned and left. Jennifer knew he was heading to see the Minister.

* * *

Two days later on Atlantis, everyone was quietly trying to forget the horrible events of the previous couple of weeks; scientists focused more on their work, medical researchers searched their souls to see how far _they_ would go to save half a population, soldiers ran, trained and worked out harder to burn off the sense of uselessness they felt and the senior members of the expedition tried to come to terms with how an offer of assistance and shared knowledge could go so wrong even seriously injuring one of their own.

Jennifer was aware that the other senior members of the expedition really had no one to turn to for support except each other, so she invited them all to her quarters to watch some fluffy, happy movie, on her big screen monitor, and to share the last of her special candy stash.

At 20:00, the door chimed and Jennifer welcomed Rodney in. An offer of sweets was about all it took for him to reply to her e-mail in record time. He was in his casual clothing, the light blue shirt he wore on her birthday, which was her favorite because it brought out his eyes, and khaki pants. He had a bag of Hershey's Kisses in his hand.

"I thought you could use this, so we can keep your M&M stash secret," he said as he held the bag out to her.

"Where did you get these?" Jennifer asked as she took the bag. Rodney walked over and grabbed a spot on the sofa and picked up the remote. _He acts like he lives here. Well, he did pick it out with you and set up your TV and computer interface. _

"Uh-oh, someone will notice you have a huge monitor compared to the others," Rodney said as he looked back at her.

Jennifer was dumping the Kisses in a bowl and put some of the peanut M&M's back in the box. They really were her addiction and she wanted to keep them a little longer if she could.

"I'll just say it came with the room," Jennifer brought the bowl over and set it on the table with the bottles of water and container of mixed nuts as she settled back on the couch.

"But won't someone know it wasn't here before," Rodney asked grabbing a water and a few chocolates, as he sat back next to Jennifer.

"No, you're the only one who's been in my quarters." The door chimed again, so Jennifer got up before she saw a smile cross the physicist's face.

Teyla and Aiden arrived, followed by Elizabeth and John. Carson was the last one to arrive and it was apparent he had been crying. Jennifer knew Carson spoke to Doctor Heightmeyer already and she was glad. Just because she did not want to talk to the woman did not mean the medical genius thought the psychologist had no value.

"Carson, I saved the last of the mixed nuts for you," Jennifer said as he tried to smile at her.

"Thank you, love," Carson's eyes drifted to the marks still visible on the sides of her neck and then around the room at the others. Finally, he took a seat on the sofa leaving enough room for Jennifer to sit between him and Rodney.

Conversation was lite. Elizabeth brought some large chocolate bars she had and John had a bag of marshmallows. Jennifer started laughing as he pulled them out of the pocket of his jacket and then had to stop when she got a pain in her chest.

"Does it still hurt?" Aiden asked and everyone shot him a look. Swallowing a drink of water, he looked away.

"Only when I laugh or try to pick up heavy things," Jennifer said with a slight smile. She could tell everyone was uncomfortable talking about her attack, especially Rodney who lost a lot of color from his face when she answered. "It's getting better each day. At least I can sleep through the night."

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Jennifer," Elizabeth said from her seat in a chair to Jennifer's right. "We were all extremely frightened for you. The entire base held it's breath until you woke up the next morning. The stream of people into my office was never-ending."

"Thank you, Doctor…"

"Elizabeth, please. We are not on duty," Elizabeth laughed and the others chuckled or laughed as well.

"Sorry, my Dad would never forgive me if I didn't give you the right amount of respect," Jennifer said with a smile.

"Your father seems like quite a character," Sheppard said smiling. Jennifer had mentioned her dad on many occasions to John.

"You have no idea," Carson said suddenly a little more animated. "He pulled Rodney and I aside and told us to make sure Jennifer didn't get mixed up with any of you flyboys or jarheads."

Everyone broke into laughter and Jennifer rolled her eyes. "I still can't escape him. He's even got spies in the Pegasus galaxy."

For a little while, Carson, Jennifer and even Rodney told some stories of Jennifer's father. After a while, the others started sharing about their families that were left behind.

When silence enveloped them, John finally broke it asking, "So, what are we watching?"

The group decided on _The Wizard of Oz_, since it was a happy movie and one Teyla must see, according to John.

* * *

**A/N Next will be Underground. Don't worry, the aftermath of this will be around a long time, unlike the show.**


	13. Underground

**MGM owns all characters except OCs**

**Thank you for the reviews and to scr1 for her help. Sorry for the long hiatus as you have seen, my muse got pulled in several directions lately. Time for next installment of the AU.**

* * *

"The Food Police is what they are. Her and Bates, your attack dog," Rodney said pointing to Sheppard, gulping coffee and biting into his sandwich.

"What are _Food Police_?" Teyla asked.

"Jennifer has been asked by Doctor Weir to assess the nutritional needs of the expedition," John filled Teyla in. "She questioned McKay's eleven cups of coffee each day."

"I need to think." Rodney defended himself and gulped down more.

"Okay, are we ready to get started?" Elizabeth asked as she came in and sat down. Noticing Rodney eating in the conference room, she asked, "What are you doing?"

"I need to hide if I want to eat in peace," he said as he took another bite.

"From who?" Elizabeth asked.

"Your food cop," said Rodney as he finally took the last bite of his sandwich.

"Excuse me?" Elizabeth asked looking annoyed at Rodney's ability to drag out the simplest thing.

"Keller," the physicist said with obvious annoyance in his voice. "She's going to restrict our diet. I'm hypoglycemic. I need to eat."

"And she knows that. It's why I asked Jennifer to assess the nutritional needs of everyone on this base. I wanted a physician in charge if we need to ration food so that all medical needs could be met." Weir shook her head at the astrophysicists' concern.

"Ration food!" Rodney shouted. "You've got to be kidding me."

"No, I'm not. The Athosians will not have a harvest for many months and we are getting low." Elizabeth shot Rodney a warning glance that told him to hold his tongue. "It's what this meeting is about. Teyla knows a group of farmers that might wish to trade with us. Teyla, please go ahead and tell us about these Genii."

* * *

Later in the day, Jennifer Keller, Sergeant Bates and Master Sergeant Nate Parker, sat at one of the tables In the mess hall discussing the inventory of food and how to secure it if there was rationing.

"We're still going to have to get food to the Athosians," Jennifer added to the discussion with the head of security and head of logistics for the expedition. Mario Suarez and Dana Pike were in and out of the meeting as well. They were the two Air Force chefs who accompanied the expedition. Once the food ran out, they would only be passing out MRE's until the Athosians grew more.

"Excuse me, I'm sorry to interrupt," Mario said in a thick accent giving away his Puerto Rican heritage.

"Not interrupting much." Jennifer smiled and nodded for him to go ahead.

"We did an inventory of the MRE's yesterday and now a case is gone," he said with obvious fear in his voice.

"What do you mean gone?" Bates asked in his usual accusatory manner.

"It's not in the store room," Mario said.

"I'll have security look at the cameras. When did you leave last night?" Bates already hit his radio to security.

Jennifer suddenly remembered the argument she had with Rodney at dinner about his food hoarding habits. He thought she was being nosy and that she was letting power go to her head. _You have no right to question my eating habits. I'm the most valuable member of this expedition. I don't know what Elizabeth was thinking._

Jennifer did not know what was wrong since they returned from Hoff; Rodney ignored her or was angry with her most the time. After all he did for her during and after the attack, she thought they were the best of friends, but was obviously wrong. It was upsetting and the sadness was hard to ignore. The physicist still met her for breakfast when he was free, but there was always someone else there. When she asked if he wanted to come to watch a movie, he would say '_too busy_'.

Shaking her head to bring her back to the present, Jennifer said, "I think I know what happened to it. Give me a little bit of time and I'll get it back."

"You know who stole it?" Reed asked.

"It's currently not _illegal_ to take food, so I'll deal with it." Jennifer looked at the three men sitting with her. She felt sadness sweep over her at the thought that Rodney took this to spite her. _Why is he so against me working on something new? He always says medicine is a waste of my brains and that I need to expand._ "Don't worry Mario, you're not in trouble no matter what Sergeant Bates says. He's naturally suspicious of everyone. It's why he's so good at security."

Bates looked like he was uneasy with her compliment and shifted in the chair. A slight smile crossed his face. "Thank you, Doctor Keller, and I'll accompany you. If you are retrieving stolen... I mean missing items, security should be with you."

"Thank you, Sergeant, but it's not necessary," Jennifer said. Rodney was pissed about something, but she knew he would never hurt her.

"I insist," Bates said standing up to follow her out of the mess hall.

* * *

Rodney was exhausted because he could not sleep for the last three weeks. Every time his eyes closed he was back in _that_ cell; never had he lost sleep because of another person's safety. Jennifer had caused him to lose sleep for _other_ reasons, but never because he was afraid _for_ her. Her strangled cry that first night in the infirmary when he slept nearby was burned into his brain. An intense desire to shelter Jennifer from any pain overcame him, as he remembered running to sweep her into his arms.

Rodney hoped she did not remember because he knew how much the young woman disliked being sheltered. The confused man knew when Jennifer was surrounded by the biggest, strongest men in the galaxy, which she usually was, he still wanted to protect her. _What is she doing to me? I made a fool of myself carrying her from that holding cell and hanging around her like I did. __I can't stop myself from feeling this way. Then Sheppard said I have a crush on her; it's not a crush._

Everyone joked about his crush on Samantha Carter and he admitted to carrying a torch for the Colonel for years, but the genius had never had anyone become so important to the day-to-day functioning of his life as Jennifer. If twenty-four hours passed without seeing or talking to the beautiful doctor at least once, he felt like the day was wasted. _Here I am in the most incredible place imaginable and if I don't see Jennifer, I feel empty. _None of it made sense to the smartest man in two galaxies. The thoughts and feelings were so foreign to the genius that he ran from them; hence his workaholic ways and anger with Jennifer.

He was on his way to his lab to grab a bite to eat and then was going back with Sheppard to the Genii. _I could be doing so much more stuff than looking for food and negotiating with the Amish._

Laughter could be heard coming from his lab. A female laugh that he had memorized since that fateful night in Antarctica when they first met and he had insulted her could be heard. _What is Jennifer doing here? Now no one will get anything done. _The closeness she had with several men in his department also angered the physicist to no end. _If I have to watch Gaul and Zelenka fawning over her, I'll send them both to the sewage treatment plant._

"I'll catch you for dinner, okay Radek?" Jennifer could be heard saying.

"Certainly, now that the good food will be back in the mess hall," the voice of the Czech sounded.

_Good food? No, she didn't._ Rodney picked up the pace and ran into his lab to see Jennifer and the Pit Bull, Bates, talking with Radek and some of the others. Bates was holding a large cardboard box.

"Sheppard!" Rodney roared into his radio. "I would like to report a theft."

"What? McKay, we need to go," John's annoyed voice said.

"I want you in my lab now!" He yelled and glared at the brown eyes of his _friend_. Sleep deprivation, emotions he did not understand and a feeling of jealousy at how easily she got along with his staff fed his anger.

Jennifer stopped laughing when Rodney's angry voice could be heard. "Rodney, it's not stealing, I am simply returning something you took in the first place."

Rodney glared at her.

"I really don't have the energy anymore for another stupid fight with you about food," Jennifer said, noticing his staff scurrying away.

"Stupid! My health is stupid!" Rodney roared.

Bates appeared concerned for Jennifer and stepped between them. "Calm down, Doctor McKay."

"What? You brought security. You think I'm going to…" Rodney could not finish his sentence. No matter how angry he was with himself and how much he wanted to take it out on Jennifer, his heart was screaming at him. _Can't you see she's upset? All the happiness and laughter you heard as you came up the hall is gone from her face and you caused it._

Sheppard came in looking at Jennifer and Bates. "What's going on, Jennifer?"

"Oh, sure, ask her. They are stealing stuff from my lab," Rodney said crossing his arms and glaring like a kid on the playground.

"This is stupid, Rodney," Jennifer said and turned to the Major. "John, he took a box of MRE's from the mess hall and I came to take them back."

"You took food?" John looked at his teammate with raised eyebrows.

"No… I mean yes, but I didn't think it was _illegal_." He shot a dirty glance at Jennifer and Bates.

"Well, I guess, technically it's not since we didn't start rationing." John looked back to Jennifer and Bates.

"See, even Sheppard thinks you are out of line." Rodney had a look of triumph pass over his face. "Put it back."

"No," Jennifer said crossing her arms. "Do we need to trouble Doctor Weir with this?"

"Oh, I see, go running to Elizabeth. That's mature," Rodney barked at her.

* * *

Jennifer was on the verge of tears. _Why does Rodney suddenly hate me? _Turning to her other close friend, she shot a questioning look at him. "Major?"

"Jennifer, you should have asked McKay before rummaging through his lab…" John started only to be cut off by Rodney as soon as it sounded like the Major was agreeing with the physicist.

"Ha!" Rodney's smug grin got bigger.

"Whatever," Jennifer said as she glared at him. Her desire to run to her quarters and cry was very strong. _I am not giving him the satisfaction of seeing how much this upsets me._ "Sergeant, please return the food to the mess hall. We can continue this conversation when you two are back and we can get some of Elizabeth's time."

"Let's hope we don't need to involve…" John started only to be cut off by Jennifer this time.

"No, I want Doctor Weir to see what a whiner her head of science is," Jennifer said with as much venom as the normally pleasant woman could put in her voice. She walked past the teammates with Sergeant Bates who got a nod from Sheppard to carry on with her instructions.

* * *

John had seen real sadness in Jennifer's eyes after Rodney's outburst. His teammate did have a point about it not being against the rules to take food, but his level of anger really was uncalled for. "Rodney, why are you hoarding food in the first place?"

"What? I'm not hoarding. I work all hours of the day and night and need food close by," Rodney said as they turned to head to the Gateroom.

"A case of MREs? Come on? I think you're being too hard on Jennifer about this. She's been given a special project by Weir and wants to do it right. She's not going to let you starve, Rodney. I thought you two were really good _friends_," John said emphasizing the word _friends._

"Let's go," his teammate said as he bowed his head and headed up the corridor.

* * *

The next morning, Jennifer stood in the jumper bay with Sergeant Bates, Richards, Warrington, Carter and Mace. Elizabeth had asked her to accompany some Athosians to discuss a trade of medical supplies for food with a people called the Manarans. The young woman was excited about going out with Sergeant Bates' team.

Tony Mace had served his time in the proverbial doghouse and was now allowed back with the regular Marines. Richards still had a cold expression when his eyes flicked over the young man. Mace's experience with gate teams and his service with Colonel Sumner and Lieutenant Ford at the SGC made Richards take him along, but he did not have a lot of trust in the younger Marine.

Sergeant Markham landed the jumper after going to retrieve Kanaan, Halling and another Athosian, named Doran, from the mainland. They were all going to a planet called Manara, which Teyla had also mentioned to Doctor Weir as a possible food-trading partner. Jennifer was excited to be going off world and at seeing the two Athosians she had missed. Since her attack, she had only gone to visit with the Athosians once and Halling and Kanaan were surveying the mainland, so she did not see them.

Once the two large men exited the jumper, they quickly walked to her. Halling grabbed her by the shoulders and leaned down to press his forehead to hers with Kanaan repeating the gesture.

"We are so pleased that you are all right, Doctor Keller," Halling said with obvious emotion in his voice.

"Yes, Adira and Teyla have told us of your recovery, but it is good to see you are well in person," Kanaan said. He did not smile often, but a slight lifting of the corners of his mouth showed his obvious affection for the young woman.

"Thank you both and I am fine now." Jennifer still had a couple small marks on her neck, which she could keep hidden by the collar of her jacket, and she could not sleep for more than a couple hours without waking in terror every night. _I don't think anyone needs to know that, though._

"What can you tell us about the Manarans?" Bates asked. It was obvious he was uncomfortable with the Athosians' involvement. He had never gotten over his feelings of distrust for Teyla and her people.

"They are a proud people who do not wish to trade with those beneath them," Halling said with obvious distain in his voice. "I believe you will be sufficiently _qualified_ to talk with them. They have a plentiful supply of food, but we have never had anything of value to them in return."

"Great, arrogant food-hoarders. Got a lot of experience with that type the last couple of days," Jennifer said as they turned to go down to the Gateroom. The Marines found it hard not to laugh, as the whole base was aware of the falling out the _dynamic duo_ was having of late.

It was common knowledge to everyone except McKay, Keller and some of the senior team that Rodney was smitten with the young doctor. No one thought for a moment that Jennifer was anything but a friend to him, but they had been together so often in the early months that the nickname was given to them and it still stuck. It was either Jimmy Tung or Chuck Campbell, the Gate techs who came up with it, but no one could remember exactly which one.

The last few weeks fed the rumor mill with all sorts of crazy stories. A battle between Sheppard, who everyone thought really _had_ a relationship with Jennifer, and McKay after her attack. It was said that McKay punched Sheppard and then Richards stopped his CO from throwing McKay over the railing. The fact that neither man was injured or seemed to be closer friends now than before did not mean anything to the rumormongers. They kept them flowing.

There was also a rumor that McKay professed his love for Jennifer in the infirmary during her recovery only to have her reject him. This one was the more popular of late because they obviously were not as close as before.

As Jennifer and the soldiers stopped before Doctor Weir to leave for their mission, the technicians and staff around the gate room all looked at her with sympathy._ Poor thing, at least she'll get some peace away from McKay and his jealous ranting. Too bad he can't realize she's way out of his league._

"I want to wish you luck and hope that you keep what we need to offer to a minimum. No plastic explosives," Elizabeth said with a roll of her eyes.

"What?" Jennifer asked.

"Apparently Major Sheppard can get us food for some medical supplies and C4," Elizabeth replied.

"C4?" Jennifer asked.

"Yes, to clear stumps for crop land," Elizabeth explained.

Jennifer, as usual, started laughing. "My dad had this stump in the yard that every couple years, he would try to remove. He got an axe, had me get sulfuric acid once and even pulled the axle off a truck trying to tear it out of the ground. Who knew we only needed some plastic explosives?"

Everyone laughed at Jennifer's story. _Leave it to Doctor Keller to lighten the mood._ The Athosians even seemed to realize this was humorous and smiled along with the Marines.

* * *

They arrived on Manara late in the day according to local time. Several men dressed in black Renaissance-era clothing greeted them. After Halling mentioned they had come to trade and to introduce the Manarans to their new friends, they were taken to a large room in a brick building close to the Stargate. They were told to wait for Smeadon, their leader, to arrive.

While waiting, Jennifer looked around the room. There were doors at either end of the room they were in and it had the markings of a waiting area. There were benches lining the walls and a small table with a pitcher of liquid and glasses.

"Looks like they get a lot of company," Jennifer muttered to Richards, who had not left her side.

Halling, Kanaan and Doran were conversing amongst themselves and the other Marines stood nearby assessing the space. Sergeant Bates was rocking on his feet. The Head of Security was obviously anxious to get this moving.

"Gunny, if they ask us to go inside, I think some of you should stay out here," Jennifer said.

"You working on your military tactics now, Doctor Keller?" The way Gunny Richards spoke you always thought he was totally serious. It took a moment for the young doctor to smile brightly and chuckle.

"Absolutely. I'm trying to expand my horizons," she said.

"Then I'll inform the Major we have a new recruit. With all your degrees, you would be coming in as a Colonel, most likely," Gunny said still looking around as if expecting someone to jump out of the doors.

"Cool. Running Atlantis military. I can deal with that. I'll be sure to give the Major some crappy assignments guarding the sewage reclamation plant or something like that," she said smiling.

Richards nodded, which was the closest the man got to a smile while on duty. The Manarans returned at that point.

"Chancellor Smeadon will see you now," the guard said.

Bates walked over to Richards and Jennifer.

"Carter, Mace, Warrington and I will stay here if you need us," Richards said to Bates, who nodded in agreement.

Jennifer marveled at the way the other soldiers, no matter their position or rank with regard to Richards deferred to the older Marine. _I really need to get his story some day._

"Sounds good, Gunny." Bates nodded and turned to Jennifer, "Doctor Keller, I'll escort you in. Just stay behind me."

"Of course, Sergeant," Jennifer said. Her respect of what these men stood for was too strong to ever fool around when they were protecting her.

* * *

The room they entered was dark. Deep red curtains at one end hid something from view. Black chairs surrounded a dark red table that looked like cherry wood to Jennifer. The windows, which were frosted, showed the shadow of overgrown vines on the outside. Jennifer looked around and noted the only visible exit was where they entered. A painting hung on the wall and it looked similar to a painting on Earth. _Even in a galaxy plagued by death and destruction, art still existed._

"I am Chancellor Smeadon, how may I be of assistance?" A bald, older gentleman dressed in black said from the front of the room. All of the people they had seen so far wore black clothing and some had large black hats like the Amish back in the United States.

"I am Halling of the Athosians. We have met before Chancellor. I come to introduce our newest friends to you," Halling said bowing his head slightly. "This is Sergeant Bates and Doctor Keller."

Smeadon immediately zeroed in on Jennifer and said, "Doctor? What do you mean by that term?"

"I am a physician, a healer of sick and injured people," the physician said aware that terms and names did not necessarily mean the same thing among different cultures. Since the Ancients seeded all the languages of the galaxies, people usually found a common language. The Athosians spoke a derivative of Ancient among themselves, which Jennifer was learning from Teyla.

"Ah. You dress strangely and your escorts have unusual weapons. Where are you from?" He asked raising his eyebrows.

"We have kept to ourselves to avoid the Wraith's detection like so many others. We have started venturing forth with the Athosians as our allies and guides," Jennifer said trying to be as vague as possible, yet still answer his question, so he did not ask anymore.

"So, there are more of you?" He asked as he motioned for them to sit.

Jennifer sat between Bates and Halling. Doran and Kanaan remained standing behind them.

"A few. We have been _selective_ in who we deal with so far," Jennifer said careful to imply they were as haughty and snobbish as the Manarans. "Not all those we have encountered have had something worth trading for."

Smeadon smiled and glanced at the Athosians. "I see. And your alliance with the Athosians?"

"The Athosians share their crops with us and act as guides. As a knowledgeable and well-traveled race, they are the perfect partners for us." Jennifer hated this guy already. _You insufferable snob._

"I see," Smeadon said looking a little differently at Halling. "So, how may we help you?"

"We are in need of food," Jennifer said.

"Food?"

"Yes, all our weapons and medical knowledge cannot hide the simple fact that our crops have not come in and we will not have enough to eat." Jennifer grew up in farm country, so she knew about agriculture. "Halling informed us that you are experts in the field of agriculture and that you have plentiful harvests."

"Yes, we do have high yields. I thank you for the compliment, Halling," Smeadon said. "Well, before we find out what you have to offer, I would suggest a meal."

"Certainly." Jennifer looked at Bates and could tell he wanted to go. _This is important, we can't offend them_, she tried to say with her eyes to the cocky Marine.

* * *

After a meal of some type of meat that Jennifer swore really was chicken, squash-like vegetables and a grain dish like couscous on Earth, she knew it was time to offer their piece of the trade.

"Thank you for the excellent food. Now, I am certain you want to know what we can offer," Jennifer said smiling at the man. It appeared every time she looked up, his eyes were on her and it made her unsettled. Not frightened, she knew the Athosians were physically stronger than the men in the room and the Marines outside would be there in a heartbeat. The look he gave her reminded her of a lecherous professor in graduate school.

"Yes," Smeadon said moving his eyes up to her face. "What do you have to trade?"

"Medical supplies and knowledge," Jennifer said crossing her arms over her chest.

"Your knowledge?" Smeadon asked.

"Mine and several others," Jennifer said forcing herself to look the Manaran leader in the eyes. "We have found an illness that afflicts many of the peoples we have met that we call _influenza_. We have treatments for this illness and can help your people to heal quicker and increase your productivity. When people are sick, they cannot work limiting your capabilities."

"You are indeed knowledgeable, Doctor Keller," Smeadon said with a smile as he sat back in his chair. "Of course, you could be making all this up."

"Yes, I have some of this medicine with me. I would be willing to give it to your physicians to administer to your family or your enemies for that matter," Jennifer said sitting back in her seat. _This is it. If he refuses, we're done. I have nothing else to offer them. I refuse to give these people any weapons because they will probably use them against people __**not worthy **__in their eyes._

Smeadon and several others laughed. "I see you understand how to deal with people, Doctor Keller. You are an excellent leader."

"I am not the leader of our people. I am a representative," she said. _Be confident. Act like Rodney.  
_

"But you are very important. I can tell by the way the soldiers defer to you and the level of respect shown for you by the Athosians. It shows a position of power among your people," Smeadon nodded. "I would enjoy trading with you. Let us see this cure you have."

"Of course," Jennifer said holding in her excitement. _You can jump up and down back on Atlantis._

* * *

Jennifer was whisked off to the infirmary as soon as they arrived back on Atlantis from Manara. Major Sheppard and his team returned shortly before her. Carson was in the infirmary to deal with Rodney, but the physicist was being particularly difficult and demanded to see _his_ doctor.

As Jennifer rushed to her quarters to change out of her uniform she had been wearing for over a day, she complained to Carson, "Just deal with him. What's so important, you can't check him out?"

"He doesn't trust me because they were around high levels of radiation from unshielded uranium and he wants…" Carson relayed.

"Oh my God! On my way." Jennifer cut him off and flat out ran the rest of the way. _I got a change of clothes in my office._

Her mind was racing through bone marrow transplants and the fact that they did not know everyone's matching blood types, yet, so it would take days to find the right people and that she might lose her friends. By the time she arrived in the infirmary, she was exhausted, upset and panting from the long run and runaway thoughts.

"Jennifer, love," Carson said when he saw her. "Are you all right?"

"Ran…to…get…here," Jennifer panted clutching a stitch in her side. "Sprinted actually."

"You cut me off before I could finish, though." Carson put an arm around her as they headed to her office.

"Finish what? We need to get a donor system set up…" Jennifer began. She was pulling her old jacket off as she walked briskly to her office.

"Why are you taking your clothes off?" Carson asked glancing around. The infirmary was full of people, two jumpers of soldiers plus Sheppard's team and the doctors.

"Because I've been wearing them for almost two days. Can't be around immune compromised people in dirty clothing," Jennifer snapped as she stepped into her office. "Did you get a message out about bone marrow donors and testing?"

"Jennifer, I've been trying to finish. They were not exposed to the levels long enough for immediate damage to occur," Carson explained turning his back because, in her haste, she kicked off her shoes and grabbed the hem of her t-shirt.

"What?" A muffled cry could be heard behind the door Carson closed on his way out. "Carson, I hate you!"

The sound of something hitting off the door caused Marie and Amanda to pause while passing by and look at Carson, who shook his head.

A few seconds later, with un-tucked t-shirt and hopping on one foot while trying to pull on her shoes without untying them, Jennifer appeared. "Why didn't you tell me that first! You _should_ have said, _everyone is fine, but…"_

"And you should stop assuming the worse until you hear the whole story," Carson lectured as they walked toward the examination areas.

"And you should not start with the bad news first," Jennifer shot back grabbing his shoulder to get the shoe all the way on.

"What did you throw at the door by the way?"

"My shoe," Jennifer said as she tucked in her t-shirt. Her hair was down and fell around her face making her look even younger.

"Lovely. It appears _his_ nasty personality is wearing off on you. I see I'll need to separate the two of you from now on," Carson said as they stepped into the busy examination area.

"Jennifer, where were you?" Sheppard asked from where he stood with Elizabeth.

"Off world getting food, what did you do?" Jennifer asked looking for Rodney.

"Oh, got exposed to radiation, held hostage by 1950's era communists and explored a Hive ship," John said nonchalantly. "All in a day's work."

"Hive ship?" Jennifer stopped and stared.

"Yes, the Major and his team attempted to destroy a Hive ship and then made a nuclear-powered enemy," Elizabeth said.

"I got food and you got us a nuclear-powered enemy?" Jennifer said incredulously. She turned to Elizabeth and said, "I am _so_ getting employee of the month for this one."

Everyone in the infirmary laughed.

"Where's Rodney?" Jennifer asked looking around and not seeing the physicist anywhere.

"He's waiting in Exam Three and he's all yours. Doesn't think I know how to draw blood or use a scanner for detecting radiation exposure," Carson said crossing his arms in disgust.

Jennifer nodded to Sheppard, Elizabeth and Carson then she headed to the examination room. _Rodney should know his own exposure better than me. He's the physicist._

* * *

Rodney was pacing. He had to see Jennifer; the drive was stronger than his sense of self-preservation. Seeing those people who had been fed upon on the Hive ship affected him greatly. He was drawn to them and even kneeled next to one. His mind replayed the horrible attack on Jennifer as he looked at it and thought that she could have been a desiccated corpse like those people. He remembered catching Sheppard's eye and seeing the same thoughts mirrored there. _This could have been Jennifer._

Sheppard had seen Colonel Sumner being killed by the Queen and had to put him out of his misery. A shiver went through Rodney at the thought that Jennifer could have been in a similar situation. The intensity of his feelings and of the team's near death at the hands of the Genii, made him a terrible person to be around when he returned. The fact that Jennifer was off world was the final straw. He could have screamed at Elizabeth for letting her go, but held his tongue and shouted at Carson instead. _I've made a big enough fool of myself already trying to keep her safe. _

"Rodney," Jennifer said sounding slightly out of breath.

He turned and saw her in a blue t-shirt with her hair down. Stunned for a moment at seeing her so casually dressed in the infirmary or anywhere for that matter, he could not find the words.

"Rodney, are you all right? Carson told me about the radiation. Do you think you were exposed?" Jennifer came toward him, but he still could not talk.

His arms moved without a signal from his brain when she got close and pulled her to him. Sliding one hand up her back, he held her head tight to his chest and closed his eyes to enjoy the feel of her soft hair on his hands. It fell below her shoulders and touched his hand on her lower back as well.

Rodney forgot how much shorter Jennifer was than him until he had her in his arms again, their other hugs felt so long ago. Her head fit perfectly under his chin and he took a moment to rest his head against her. _She's safe. Of course she's safe, she was with the Athosians, Richards and Bates._

Suddenly realizing that she had slid her arms around him and was hugging him back, he stiffened and pushed her away, holding her shoulders with his hands. "I'm sorry, Jennifer."

"Rodney, what's wrong?" Jennifer slid her hands from his back to his waist.

"I… Uh… I'm…" Rodney tried to avoid her direct gaze, but finally relented and looked into her brown eyes. They were full of concern and compassion. The cranky, arrogant astrophysicist suddenly melted under the tawny gaze. "I haven't been sleeping since… And seeing…"

"Rodney, why didn't you tell me about not being able to sleep?" Jennifer moved a hand from his waist up to his shoulder where she squeezed gently.

Rodney felt entranced as he looked at her. He tried to memorize every detail of the moment, especially the feel of her hands on his body and her body under his own. "I… It's nothing."

"Rodney! You need to sleep. You're far too important to be walking around in a sleep-deprived state. Look what it's made you do," Jennifer said with a slight smile.

"What?" Rodney had no idea what she was talking about.

"You nearly crushed me when I came in," Jennifer said, laughing.

"Huh? Oh, I'm really sorry." Rodney let go of her shoulders after her comments. _Idiot, once again._

"Rodney, friends hug. It's okay. Carson hugs me all the time," Jennifer explained, but did not remove her hands or step back.

"I've noticed." Rodney tried to keep the jealousy out of his voice. _Jealous of Carson? What's wrong with you?_

"I can give you something to help you sleep," Jennifer said finally moving away from him.

He felt empty at the loss of the contact. She had gone to get something from a locked cabinet. "No. I don't want to take anything. They don't really work anyways. My brain is going too fast to get slowed down by those drugs. I'd need a serious sedative."

"Me too. I can't take them, either." Jennifer glanced at him and then looked away shyly.

Even to the clueless man that he was, it was obvious she wanted to tell him something. "What is it, Jennifer?"

Rodney walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. She looked up with a smile. "I haven't been able to sleep either. Whenever I close my eyes…"

"Jennifer," Rodney said and once again his body moved without his brain ordering it to. His hand began to gently rub her shoulder and he stepped closer so her shoulder rubbed his chest, Jennifer's closeness managed to push the images of the dead humans on the Hive ship out of his mind.

"I know it's been weeks, but I can't get the face of that Wraith out of my head. My throat and chest still hurt," Jennifer said trying not to break down. She lifted her hand and grabbed onto his.

"You need to take it easy," Rodney said with the same soft voice he used when he was with her after the attack. He never remembered showing compassion for anyone before he met Jennifer. Not even when Samantha Carter was electrocuted all those years ago did he show such concern. Yes, he went to see her in the infirmary, but never tried to hold her or take care of her. _How does Jennifer make me be such a different person?_

"I have been. This mission was simple, but took _time_," Jennifer said and turned to look at him, removing her hand from his and placing both on his chest. "It sounds like a good thing I went because I heard you only got radiation exposure and a new enemy to be concerned about."

"That was Sheppard, not me," Rodney had to smile. "So, you got us food?"

"Yes, no rationing," Jennifer paused and looked away from him for a moment then her beautiful brown eyes looked back to his face. "I'm sorry for whatever I did to upset you…"

"No. It's nothing you did. I've been really exhausted. I'm sorry," Rodney explained putting his hands on her waist. Jennifer had no reason to be upset with him. He had been treating her badly because he could not figure out what she was doing to him. _I almost lost her friendship and that's too important._

"Well, we need to do something to help you relax because I was ready to punch you in the nose the other day," Jennifer said playfully, making a fist and lightly punching him on the arm.

"After you make sure I'm not dying of radiation poisoning, I think I can spare a bit of power for something to help us both relax," Rodney said with a smile on his face. He stepped back from the contact to snap his fingers. _A spare naquadah generator won't be missed for an evening. _He had done some investigating into the _holodeck_ room and realized he could hook a naquadah generator up to it directly. _A night under the stars is exactly what Jennifer needs._

"Don't _you_ know how much radiation you were exposed to?" Jennifer asked.

He often forgotten how smart she was. His excuse that Carson could not exam him did not fly with Jennifer, so he caved in. "Of course I know how much I was exposed to."

"Then why the big fuss with Carson when you got here. I haven't even been able to shower. I'm surprised you want to stand this close to me," Jennifer said chuckling.

"Now that you mention it." Rodney laughed giving himself the opportunity to _not_ explain his strong desire to see her with his own eyes as soon as he returned. "Why don't you freshen up? I'll grab something for us to eat and meet you near the transporter in an hour?"

"Well, first I need to clear you, so get on the table," Jennifer said in her doctor's voice. She did not stop smiling and Rodney swore her cheeks looked flushed, just like his own for the rest of the exam.

* * *

Jennifer felt like she was never going to sleep again and it had nothing to do with the Wraith. Rodney had hugged her for no reason and then apologized for being mean to her. It was more than she could have hoped for, but it was not all. He also suggested another _date_.

Because her head was on cloud nine, she walked into Carson coming down the hallway. He was not paying attention either.

"I'm sorry, Carson, I wasn't…" Jennifer stopped when she saw his face. It was red and his eyes said he had been crying. "Carson, what's wrong?"

A thousand disasters could have struck in the half hour it took her to she shower and change into casual clothing in her quarters. She slid her arm around his shoulders and started walking with him to his quarters nearby.

"I'm sorry, love. Just met with Doctor Heightmeyer," Carson said stopping them in the corridor. "I always get upset."

"I really don't see how reliving Hoff every few days is helping you," Jennifer said sounding annoyed. "You need something else to take your mind off everything, so you can sleep without drugs for once."

"Jennifer, I know you don't think psychologists help people, but they do," Carson said with some annoyance as they stopped outside his quarters.

"If they could magically make it go away, great. And I know they help people, just not me," Jennifer said getting annoyed. "But this is about you, not me."

"You look like you're going somewhere," Carson said looking at her in her pink sweater and tan pants. His eyebrows shot up. "A date?"

"No, Carson, it's not a date. I'm tired of wearing my uniform all the time. I didn't bring as many clothes as other folks, which is why I'm usually in it," Jennifer explained. _The last thing I need is Carson thinking I'm on a date with Rodney. That's my little fantasy._ "And stop changing the subject. You and I both know you have not been sleeping."_  
_

"If you say so. Don't let me keep you," her mentor and friend said turning to enter his quarters and ignoring her concern over his sleeping habits.

"Wait. I think I can help with the relaxing. I want to show you something, but you have to promise you won't say anything to anyone, especially Sheppard and Doctor Weir," Jennifer said quietly. As soon as Rodney mentioned power, she knew he meant the _holodeck_ room, as they called it.

"What are you talking about, love?" The Scotsman asked with raised eyebrows.

* * *

Jennifer had to call Rodney on the radio to tell him she was bringing Carson. He sounded disappointed.

"He isn't going to tell anyone and he's been having a tough time. Even worse than me," Jennifer said.

"You were attacked!" Rodney said angrily.

"But he helped advance the research that they used to kill fifty percent of their people," Jennifer said. "We all did."

"Fine, but he'll have to get a cot or something and some food," Rodney said still sounding annoyed.

"Yes, I'll take care of it," Jennifer sighed. She did want to spend time alone with Rodney, but her relationship with Carson was like a family bond. He had such a hard time dealing with everything that happened on Hoff that she was deeply concerned about him. "Rodney, he's our friend. We need to be there for him."

"Yeah, yeah. Fine, but if he says anything, I'll be locking the door."

"I don't have the Ancient gene, so I can't use the room without you anyways," Jennifer said smiling_. He's our friend. It sounds like we're some type of couple._ A big smile spread over Jennifer's face as she let that thought float in her head a little while.

She grabbed some food for Carson in the mess hall and went back to her quarters for a sleeping bag. Stopping to get Carson who had changed out of his uniform, they headed off for the lab on the other side of the city.

* * *

"Are we even powering this section?" Carson asked looking around at the semi-darkened corridor.

"Rodney is powering it for the evening," Jennifer informed him.

"For the evening?" Carson raised an eyebrow and a look of concern spread over his face. "I've been worried about the Major and those handsome young Marines, should I be concerned about my best friend?"

"What _are_ you talking about Carson?" Jennifer was glad for the dim corridor lighting because she knew she was bright red. _If Carson knew I had a crush on Rodney, he'd never let me live it down. _"Don't tell me you listen to the stupid rumors about John and me?"

"They are not the only rumors, trust me, love. John's tied to every woman on this base, just folks seem to settle on you because you flirt with each other constantly." Carson said looking annoyed. "And what's with the sleeping bag? Are we having a slumber party?"

"Sort of. You'll see," Jennifer smiled and hurried over to the door to the room. "And for the record, I do _not_ flirt with John Sheppard."

"Aye, and Rodney McKay's doesn't have an ego," her mentor shot back.

* * *

Upon entering, she saw Rodney's feet sticking out from under the console. A box with MREs and water bottles sat next to the two cots in the center of the room. Jennifer walked over and set the meal for Carson down with the others and put her sleeping bag next to the cots.

"Rodney," Carson said loudly, which was followed by a thump and some swearing.

"Rodney, are you okay?" Jennifer quickly ran and dropped to her knees next to his legs. She put a hand on his thigh as she looked under the console at him.

The annoyed physicist had dropped the wrench he was using to tighten the connection from the naquadah generator to the console onto his forehead at the sound of Carson's voice. "I see you were serious about bringing him." Rodney emerged red-faced and holding a hand to his head.

"Let me see," Jennifer said removing his hand and gently touching the rapidly forming bump. "I'll have to get an ice pack."

"No, it'll be fine. I'm done anyways," Rodney said as he pushed himself up from the floor and held out his hand to help Jennifer up.

Carson raised an eyebrow and got a glare from Jennifer when she noticed. _He thinks there's something going on with Rodney and me. I wish._

"Sorry, Rodney," Carson said looking around. "I know you're always a bit jumpy."

"I am not jumpy," Rodney barked back. "I am focused on the task at hand. It's what makes me very good at what I do. I don't get distracted."

"Of course. You never get distracted because of… oh, let's say… hunger every twenty minutes," Carson said as he walked over to look at the meal options.

"Hey…" Rodney started.

"Stop! I refuse to spend my evening listening to you two bicker like old ladies," Jennifer said. "Now, Carson, we invited you here to help you relax."

"The two most intense people I've ever known are talking to me about relaxing?" Carson chuckled. "I think I'll ask Major Sheppard about celibacy next."

"Argh!" Jennifer growled. "Carson, just lie on one of the cots and clear your mind."

"What?" Carson asked looking at a cot and then Jennifer.

"You need to lie down to get the full effect. I brought a sleeping bag, so take a cot," Jennifer said as she started putting her sleeping bag on the floor.

"You are not lying on the hard floor," Rodney said walking over.

"You have a bad back and Carson is our guest, so you get the cots," Jennifer said.

"Carson can lie on the floor," Rodney said in a voice that said not to argue with him.

"Rodney…" Jennifer started.

"What the bloody hell is this place?" Carson said obviously annoyed with the two of them.

"It's like a cross between a planetarium and the holodeck on _Star Trek_," Jennifer explained.

"What?" Carson asked.

"Just lie down and…" Jennifer paused. "Oh, you have the ATA gene, too. That might pose a problem."

"What?" Rodney asked.

"Well, Carson's gene is naturally occurring, which means it's stronger than yours," Jennifer said trying to deliver the message as sweetly as possible to her best friend's over sized ego.

"Why would you say that?" Rodney said, crossing his arms and glaring.

"Because the device Radek, Peter and I developed to measure ATA activity shows that naturally-occurring ATA ability is stronger. We're developing a ranking system…" Jennifer was getting excited to describe the research she had been working on for months with Rodney's staff and forgot about placating his ego.

Carson started laughing behind them and they both looked at him.

"I promise I won't interfere with Rodney's toy. I'll keep my superior powers in line," he said laughing hysterically now.

"At least we made him laugh," Jennifer said quietly to Rodney as a smile spread over her face.

"At my expense. Thanks, Jennifer. Remind me to have you put lemon juice in the next paper cut I get," he said turning to the console to adjust something leaving her to giggle.

When he turned back, he said, "And you are not lying on the floor while we are on cots."

"Fine," Jennifer said as she sat down. "Then you can lie on the floor, too."

And that was just what the three stubborn friends did. As Rodney showed Carson and Jennifer several planets they had recently explored, the young doctor felt herself drifting off to sleep. It was a sleep without any dreams save one about the handsome astrophysicist lying less than an arm's length away. The sound of his breathing and occasional comment about the planet he was showing them was the best lullaby she could imagine and the three of them slept without any nightmares for the first time in weeks.

**TBC  
**

* * *

**A/N: Home is basically written, so one more _lite_ one before what I call the trio of _woe_ for Rodney: Storm/Eye, Defiant Ones and Hot Zone. He gets some serious physical and psychological whump in those three. Enjoy the interlude in these couple of chapters.**


	14. Home

**MGM owns all characters.**

**A/N: I changed the order around a bit in Rodney's alternate reality. Rodney stays at SGC and plays with the ZPM then goes to his apartment****.**

**Thanks to scr1 & dwparsnip for beta.  
**

* * *

Rodney was furious with Elizabeth and General Hammond. _Relax_ they told him. _Go home and get some rest. I'm sure the laws of physics did not change overnight, Rodney. And where the hell was General O'Neill and SG1? Out on a mission? What the hell was that? It's all messed up.  
_

He opened the door to his townhouse. The plants his neighbor was supposed to water were dead. He looked and had no messages on his answering machine, not that he was expecting any. There was no one who missed Rodney McKay on Earth outside of his work, but his absence would be missed on Atlantis. _Jennifer_. Thoughts of her beautiful face came to mind and caused him to smile. _I have to get back to her. She's the only true friend I ever had._

Rodney pulled off his shoes and looked around his kitchen. He had been gone for almost six months and hoped there was nothing in his refrigerator. Fearful he did not empty everything, he looked for some chips or candy in the cabinets.

A knock at his door pulled him out of his thoughts. Walking over and hoping it was someone from the SGC or his neighbor with his cat, he was shocked when a petite blond threw her arms around him.

"Rodney! I've missed you so much," Jennifer Keller said kissing his cheek.

"What! Jennifer, how are you… When did you? How…" Rodney could not get out the words as his arms wrapped around her. _Jennifer Keller was here on Earth._ _And just kissed me!_ "How is this possible?"

"The Stargate, silly." Jennifer was dressed in her uniform, which seemed odd. _We all had to change before leaving the base and since when does she call me __**silly**__? _"We came to the planet and dialed the Gate."

"You did?" Rodney was confused, but the feel of Jennifer's body still tightly pressed to his was distracting. _Why is she still hugging me?_

"Yes. I wasn't going to stay away from you. You know that," Jennifer said with a big grin on her face. "I've missed you."

"You did?" Rodney's eyes got as wide as saucers as Jennifer slid her hands down his shoulders and over his chest. Her body was still pressed against his and his arms remained wrapped around her waist.

"Uh-huh," Jennifer said as an expression he never saw before came over her face, something that looked a lot like desire to him. The physician licked her lips and moved her hands to start unbuttoning his shirt.

"Wh-wha-what are you doing?" Rodney stammered, barely more than a whisper.

"Showing you how much I missed you," Jennifer said as she suddenly leaned forward to kiss his neck.

Rodney staggered back into the wall behind him at the feel of her lips touching the sensitive skin on his neck. Her hands were busy unbuttoning his shirt and her lower body was… "Oh God! What are you doing?"

"I'm going to make love to you," Jennifer said as she kissed his chest as she exposed it with each undone button.

Rodney's right hand moved up to bury itself in her hair and hold her soft mouth to his body. His other hand started rubbing her back. _Jennifer wants to make love to me? I had no idea._

"Jennifer," Rodney gasped because her hands were suddenly at the clasp of his pants. _This isn't right._ "Jennifer, why… why are you doing this?"

"Because I missed being _with_ you," she said as the woman lifted her lips from kissing his neck and chest.

"Jennifer," Rodney suddenly drew got some blood back to his brain. _Missed being with me?_ He moved his hands to stop her from unzipping his pants. "Jennifer, when have we been together before?"

"In your lab, in your quarters, in my quarters, in a jumper, in the holodeck room…" Jennifer continued listing places Rodney had _fantasized_ about making love to Jennifer in. _This is not real._

"What's going on here?" Rodney shouted pushing her away. "What did they do to you?"

"Rodney," Jennifer said as she reached out for him still grinning.

"Stop. You're not _my_ Jennifer." Rodney moved to get away from her to suddenly find he was standing in the SGC on the ramp in front of the Stargate. Quickly grabbing his shirt and his pants, he looked around.

His eyes connected with Sheppard's, which were wide open and his eyebrows disappeared under his unruly hair. "You okay, McKay?"

"Huh? Wha… What happened?" Rodney dropped his hands after ensuring his shirt and pants were fastened. _Jennifer was not real. You were right._ The disappointment he felt was similar to the all too familiar feeling of being rejected. For a few moments, he thought Jennifer Keller might have wanted him to make love to her. _Who are you kidding?_

* * *

The trip back to Atlantis was frustrating. _All that power and a potential way to get home was lost._ Rodney had told them he was sure he could rig up a suit to block out the attack on everyone's brains, but she said to forget it.

Once they walked back through the Stargate, it was the middle of the night. Chuck was on duty in the control room with Lieutenant Nick Andrews and Sergeant Anthony Mace. Both men were _not_ favorites of Gunny Richards, so they got late night guard duty. Apparently, Andrews had a relative in the IOA, who got him posted on this expedition and Mace had allowed Jennifer to become injured. _If Gunny was against you, you were screwed. _Sheppard always listened to Richards' opinion on the men's ability.

The three men had been chuckling about something and suddenly jumped up when the expedition leaders returning.

"Doctor Weir," Chuck said. "Would you like me to contact Doctor Grodin?"

"No, we didn't get to dial Earth. We need to remove the address from the database, however," Elizabeth said wearily.

"Do we need to go to the infirmary, because I need to get some food?" Rodney complained as his stomach rumbled loudly.

"We need to follow standard procedure," John said. He had been watching Rodney the entire time they were in the Gateroom, in their _imagined realities_. The way Rodney looked when he first appeared and the fact that he checked his clothing told John his teammate was not thinking about dead friends. _Damn, I wish I thought up a fantasy like that._

"But, it's late and I need…" Rodney started.

"We are all going to the infirmary to be checked out. Right Elizabeth?" The Major said turning to Elizabeth and glaring at her. John had a sneaky suspicion he knew exactly who Rodney was fantasizing about. If his alternate reality were as real as John's was, it would be difficult for the genius to face the object of his fantasizing. _This should be fun._

McKay grumbled and whined all the way there. The infirmary lights were dim and it looked like no one was on duty but except nurse Patel.

"We were not expecting you back, so soon, Doctor Weir," Varsha said. "Let me get a couple of physicians."

"Oh, come on. Surely you can let us sit under the scanners and draw some blood," Rodney whined.

"All right. Now I know something's wrong. Rodney, in exam three, right now," Jennifer's voice was heard from behind them.

John kept his eyes glued to the face of his teammate, who looked in absolute terror past John at the approaching Doctor Keller. The Major started smiling, then chuckling and finally laughing, much to the surprise of everyone else.

"You too, Sheppard," Jennifer said as she paused next to John. "Rodney's allowing someone else in my department to draw blood and scan him, then you start laughing for no reason. Something weird must have been in that fog."

"You have no idea," John said continuing to chuckle. Elizabeth, Teyla and Aiden looked at him like he was nuts.

"It wasn't a fog," Rodney said with obvious annoyance.

"What was it?" Jennifer asked as she stepped over to Rodney, who looked anywhere but at the young woman in front of him.

This just made John laugh harder.

"Uh… It's… n-not important. I need to eat. It's been at least ten hours and I ate my bars a long time ago," Rodney stammered. His face was slightly red and he was wringing his hands.

"Rodney, why didn't you say something sooner," Jennifer reached out to grab Rodney's arm only to have him jump back from her, bumping into Carson, who just came up behind him.

"Watch it, Rodney," Carson said pushing McKay back. "What's going on?"

"Exactly what was your fantasy while we were on the planet?" John asked trying to look innocent, but staring at Rodney. "I have a feeling it was a lot better than mine."

"Fantasy?" Jennifer's eye grew wide and Rodney grew red.

"I'm going to be sick," the physicist yelled grabbing his mouth and turning from her in record speed.

The glare Atlantis's resident genius shot at his team leader as he ran past was one for the record books. John knew if Rodney had the slightest idea how to use his sidearm, the physicist would have shot him.

* * *

**A/N: It will take a while for Storm/Eye. I might put them together, not certain. I'm sure you knew I'd do something with Rodney's fantasy ;-) I hope you enjoyed.**


	15. The Storm

**MGM owns all characters except OC's**

**A/N: Sorry for long delay, but if you read all my work, you know I was busy with other stories. Changing the beginning around a bit from the show having one staff meeting after discussion of storm and Rodney & Radek's idea to charge shield.**

**Thanks scr1 and all the reviewers of this story. I never thought I'd hit halfway mark of season 1 with an AU.  
**

* * *

Jennifer saw apprehension on Elizabeth's face when she entered the conference room and became concerned herself. She had been working closely with Elizabeth over the past two months and became better at reading the other woman. Rodney and Radek were talking excitedly on their way to their seats; she heard something about grounding stations. John, Teyla and Aiden were already seated around the conference table. Jennifer sat with Carson and saw Sergeants Bates and Richards entering through another door, along with the logistics coordinator, Sergeant Nate Parker, who looked shell-shocked at being in the senior staff meeting.

"I'm sorry to call this meeting so quickly, but we have critical information that we need to share with everyone and we also need all of your assistance," Elizabeth said, but looked specifically at Jennifer. "Major Sheppard and Teyla discovered a large storm approaching Atlantis."

"Two actually," Rodney interjected.

Jennifer then listened to an explanation from Elizabeth and the scientists about the storm threatening Atlantis and the Athosian settlement on the mainland. Rodney and Radek came up with an idea of harnessing the lightning in the storm to charge the city and thereby charge the shield, but everyone would need to be evacuated for that to happen as the electrical charges would be a danger to anyone outside of the control room.

"You're sure the control room is shielded properly?" Jennifer asked, finally looking at Rodney. She had been avoiding his glances since she entered the conference room. After SGA-1's return from the planet where they thought they dialed Earth, the physicist had been distant around her. When she tried to talk to him about what happened, he would suddenly have something _important_ to do in his lab, so their joint meals and time spent together ended.

Waking up one morning Jennifer sadly realized she was wasting valuable time _longing_ for his company and friendship, so she told herself to forget about him. To keep from falling into depression, she forced herself to stay busy with work and to strengthen her other friendships. She worked with Carson on his latest theories regarding the Wraith, based on research gained on Hoff. Running, weapons training and self-defense training with Richards, Sheppard or Teyla physically exhausted her so she could fall asleep. Then the young genius spent time with Radek, Peter Grodin and Isabelle Dumais getting to know the scientists along with many others better. She even found time to attend a couple of Mensa meetings after confirming that Rodney would not be there. It really hurt her to see him and not have the bond they shared earlier in the expedition, but it also hurt to be his _best_ friend and be pushed aside without explanation. The question she posed to him during this meeting was the first time she spoke directly to him in a week.

"It should be. We'll be sure to wear rubber-soled shoes," Rodney said smiling. He appeared sad when their eyes made contact.

_It's his own fault. I can't sit around and try to guess what mood he'll be in._ "Should be?" Jennifer asked looking at Radek, who she knew would know the real answer.

"There is a high probability everyone staying within the control room will be fine," Radek said. "Greater than ninety-five percent, I'd say."

"And where are the rest of us going?" Jennifer asked looking at Elizabeth, who looked right back. "The mainland is not an option according to what Rodney said about the size of the storm and the possibility of losing the Stargate."

"Well, you, Sergeants Parker, Richards and Bates worked on evacuation plans, so where are we going?" Doctor Weir said with a slight smile.

Her faith in Jennifer during this serious situation floored the young woman. "The Alpha Site needs a lot of supplies to house us and the Athosians for… How long?" Jennifer asked looking at Rodney and Radek.

"Twenty-four hours at most," Rodney said looking at his laptop and then back at her, his blue eyes staring directly into hers.

Turning away quickly, Jennifer addressed the tall, thin man next to her, "Sergeant Parker?"

"We would not be able to assemble anything more than basic supplies for everyone that quickly," the Sergeant said. "Emergency rations and critical medical equipment are the only things ready to go. If we're talking about evacuating the Athosians and the city with enough supplies for two days to be on the safe side, we would need all the soldiers we have and any civilian not already busy to help. Everyone with the gene will be tied up with Jumpers and folks will need to be on the ground prepping the Alpha site immediately…"

"Oh, just bloody brilliant," Carson whined in a low voice to Jennifer. "I need to fly now."

"Stop your belly-aching, Carson," Jennifer teased softly as she punched his arm.

Parker's look of horror at having to tell the expedition leaders it could not be done shone on his face. Since he was sitting to Jennifer's left, she saw the perspiration on his forehead, the rapid rise and fall of his chest and bobbing of his Adam's apple as he swallowed frequently.

"Or, we could go someplace already _civilized_?" She added to save the Air Force Master Sergeant from a panic attack.

"Where would that be?" John asked from across the table.

"Manara," Jennifer said as it came to her. _Smeadon had been very accommodating in their trade agreement even if he's a snob. _"We saw huge empty warehouses when we were there because harvest in the capital city is not for several months, yet. We could all camp out. We'd only need blankets and emergency supplies. I think everyone can grab their favorite blanket and pillow on their way out."

Elizabeth smiled for the first time during the meeting and a few people chuckled. Her eyes connected with John, who also smiled at Jennifer. "That's an excellent idea, Doctor Keller," Doctor Weir said and looked between Jennifer and the Major.

"I'll go with you to introduce myself and check out the security situation," John said.

"All right, Doctor Keller, any final instructions to the team before we begin the temporary evacuation of Atlantis?" Elizabeth said with a patient smile on her face.

"Bates, Parker and Richards know the drill in my absence. Since Carson will be flying a jumper, get Doctor Cole in the infirmary to work on the medical evacuation plan. We have two non-critical patients and no research that can't easily go in a case with the researcher." Jennifer finished and looked around the room to see looks of pride on everyone's face. She felt like she just passed her final exam.

"Let's make this happen," Elizabeth said. "Meeting adjourned and good work everyone."

* * *

Jennifer quickly left the conference room deep in discussion with Parker, Bates and Carson. Rodney called after her, but she did not turn or acknowledge she heard him as she entered the transporter. Sheppard saw his teammate's shoulders slump as he turned to go back to the control room where Radek had settled after the meeting.

At that instant, John realized the physicist must have said something to Jennifer about how he felt and had her reject him. A part of the Major felt sorry for the man he was beginning to consider a friend; Jennifer was a highly intelligent, funny, beautiful young woman and, he was certain, exactly the type of woman Rodney dreamed of meeting. _Once this is over, I'm going to have to deal with this or the whole team is going to know about it._

"Rodney," Sheppard called to his teammate.

"Major?" Rodney asked as he wiped the lost expression off his face and put on his mask of indifference and arrogance.

"I'll take care of Jennifer, so you and Carson don't have to worry." John remembered the two men had promised her father to look out for her and they both took the promise seriously.

"Sure. Whatever, she's a big girl," Rodney said as he brushed past his CO.

_Definitely need to deal with this when I get back_, he thought with a groan. _Playing guidance counselor was not on my job description._

* * *

Jennifer was her usual funny and witty self as they took the quick walk from the gate to the Manaran settlement. Sergeant Mace was laughing hysterically at a story she told about some person who brought their car to her father's garage. When John found out her father built cars and that she built a 1969 Ford Mustang convertible with him, he asked himself once again why he _only_ considered her to be a sister. Warrington and Carter, who accompanied them since Richards and Bates were tied up, chuckled at the physician's humor.

"So, you and your best friend had a falling out?" John questioned Jennifer as they waited for someone to fetch Smeadon, who had turned in for the evening because it was late. They were in a room Jennifer said was the waiting area she had been in before.

"What are you talking about, John?" Jennifer asked with her face losing its humor and color.

"You and McKay were best buddies and now you aren't," John said. He noticed she called him by his first name more often since he found out her _secret_. _I guess it's a good thing she's never been interested in McKay because what would he do with a virgin? He's probably one himself._

"I didn't realize you kept such a close eye on my friends," Jennifer said with some anger in her voice.

"Rodney's my teammate and I know something's up with him," John said. Before he got the chance to talk to her any more about what might have happened between them, the aide returned.

"Please, Doctor Keller come this way," the young man said. "Minister Smeadon is sorry to keep you waiting. He got here as quickly as he could."

John and Jennifer were rushed into a room that was very dark. The furniture and wall coverings made John think of a scene from some creepy movie about a haunted manor that people had to spend the night in.

"Doctor Keller," an older man, who must have been minister Smeadon, said as he approached them.

"Minister Smeadon, may I present Major John Sheppard," Jennifer said looking from the leader of the Manarans to John for the introductions.

"Another soldier, I see," Smeadon said as he looked at John critically. His eyes returned to Jennifer or more specifically a certain part of Jennifer's anatomy, which was covered by her jacket.

"Major Sheppard is head of our military and wanted to meet you," Jennifer said as she smiled at John.

An wave of protectiveness went through the seasoned soldier. He knew Jennifer was not aware of the lust in the older man's eyes. A furious John Sheppard finally spoke with barely contained anger in his voice. "Yes, I like to visit with all our _trading_ partners to ensure that they know what our capabilities are to… _help_ them."

A forced smile came to the statesman's lips. "I am well aware of your weapons, Major. Several of your men along with the… Athosians came here with Doctor Keller…"

"I know and rest assured I heard _all_ about you." The Major did not attempt to hide the hostility in his voice.

"I wish we could catch up with each other, but we are here because of a dire situation and must evacuate everyone immediately for, at most, two days," Jennifer said as she smiled at the Manaran leader.

"And how many people would that be?" He asked.

Jennifer glanced at John before replying, so she missed Smeadon's look. The older man did not even try to hide his hunger for Jennifer as he met Sheppard's glare.

"A couple hundred with the Athosians," Jennifer explained oblivious to the posturing by the two men.

"We are happy to trade with you for a share of our crops, but this would require something else," he said with plenty of hidden meaning.

"I guess we'd owe you one," John said angrily. Jennifer looked at him with furrowed brow, displeased with his tone. Looking into her brown eyes, John knew she would be horrified to find out this creep looked at her like _she_ was the payment.

"One what?" Smeadon asked as he glanced between Jennifer and Sheppard.

"Look, we're in trouble. If you were a friend, you'll help. If not, tell me now so I can ask somebody else," Sheppard had reached the end of his rope with the slimy leader.

"But who else would take in so many?" He said as he looked at John with arrogance. "I want something of value in return."

"I'm sure…" Jennifer started only to be cut off by John.

"Oh, you do, do you? Y'know, we can go find any uninhabited planet…" John started himself.

"They're usually uninhabited for a good reason, Major, and you know that as well as I do or you would not be here. Still, I'm sure you could find another world to take you in. You're just so short on time," Smeadon said.

"We would greatly appreciate it," Jennifer cut in with a smile. "Wouldn't we Major?"

"One day you're gonna run across a problem and you're gonna need our help," John said standing tall and glaring at the man. _What did this bastard do when Jennifer was here before? _More anger suddenly went through John as he realized none of the men who accompanied her mentioned anything about the lecherous leader and his lust filled glances at the young doctor. _How could Gunny let this slide? He won't let anyone step a toe out of line on Atlantis where Jennifer is concerned._

"Major, I am sure Minister Smeadon is aware of our ability to help his people. I am also certain we can come to agreement on something to trade," the physician said.

"Yes, Doctor Keller, I am certain you and _I_ can make an arrangement," Smeadon said trying to look innocent.

John's fist clenched. "No, the agreement's with me and it's for a future favor, nothing else. Take it or leave it."

Smeadon laughed as Jennifer turned to glare a John. "You are a tough negotiator, Major."

"Minister…" Jennifer started in her sweet voice.

"Come on, Doc, we're leaving," John said putting his arm around her shoulder to steer her toward the exit.

"Please, we will be happy to assist you," Smeadon said. John saw a strange look pass over the man's face and for a second the soldier thought Smeadon was going to call in his guards.

"Thank you, Minister," Jennifer said with obvious relief. "I will be returning shortly with others to begin setting up our encampment."

"Certainly, Doctor Keller, you are invited to join me…" Smeadon started.

John tightened his grip on Jennifer and cut the man off, "Not necessary. We'll have our own food and anything else we need. All you need to provide is the space for us to set up."

"Very well," Smeadon said and John used all the training he ever received _not_ to throttle the jerk right there.

John practically ran Jennifer and the Marines to the gate. When Jennifer tried to question him about his behavior, he said he was playing _Bad Cop_ to her _Good Cop_. He then said they needed to hurry and get people mobilized. The real reason he was on his way back quickly was to get her out of there since there were only 4 soldiers with her and to chew out Richards and Bates. _How the hell could they have not noticed that bastard?_

* * *

"Richards!" Sheppard screamed as he entered the armory. Rodney had followed him because he wanted to discuss something as soon as John got back, but John told him to wait.

"Sir," Richards said in a wary voice because John was not holding his anger back.

"Did you let Doctor Keller out of your site when you were on Manara?" John could not believe Richards did not report Smeadon's behavior to him. _No way that guy was a perfect gentleman the last time._

"When Doctor Keller, along with Sergeant Bates, Halling, Kanaan and Doran went into a meeting with the Manaran leader and when they dined with him, sir," Richards stood at attention and stared down into Sheppard's eyes because he was several inches taller. "She was in my line of sight at all other times, sir."

John saw Bates swallow and he turned angrily to his head of security. "Did you stay with Jennifer during the meetings?"

"Yes, sir," Bates said also standing at attention.

John could not believe he had to chew out these two men over… _what? Some creep checking out Doctor Keller? No, it's more than that. Jennifer is more valuable to this mission than any of us, she must be kept safe no matter where she goes. _He took a deep breath and suddenly became aware of Rodney standing to his left with arms crossed and a mixture of anger and shock on his face. _Great, now McKay'll want to know what happened. _

"Gunny, do not let Jennifer out of your sight on Manara this time? Not at all," he spoke in a calm voice as he stared into the Sergeant's grey eyes. "If she needs the little girl's room stay outside or better yet, send in a female Marine. Am I clear?"

"Crystal, sir," Gunny said.

"What's wrong? What happened to Jennifer?" Rodney asked from next to John in a concerned voice.

"Bates, with me," John said. He did not want to chew out the head of security in front of the other men.

* * *

Walking briskly down the corridor to Bates' office with Rodney trailing behind, John collected his thoughts. After what happened with Keras on M7G-677, John should have known better. Jennifer was a beautiful, trusting woman and it would be easy for someone to take advantage of her. The thought of her innocence being shattered in such a fashion frightened the Major. _I can't believe I'm defending her virginity like some knight-in-shining armor. Isn't that the job of a boyfriend?_

When Rodney tried to enter the office, John spoke to his teammate. "Jennifer's okay. Nothing happened to her. As a matter of fact, she has no clue I'm upset at all."

"You were ready to rip Richards a new one. Something happened," Rodney said crossing his arms and standing inside the door.

John knew the physicist cared about Jennifer as more than a friend even if he had not figured it out himself. "I don't like how Smeadon treated Jennifer."

"What do you mean? She should stay with us, then," Rodney said.

"No, she'll be safer with Gunny and the Marines than getting washed away by a hurricane." John tried to smile at his teammate. "Go say good-bye to her and tell her to stay with Richards, make her promise. Okay?"

"Okay," Rodney said and nodded.

"Great." John turned back to his head of security and closed the door.

* * *

"Jennifer," Rodney said jogging down the corridor to catch up with her. He saw that Richards was not far away as they loaded some infirmary supplies onto a cart to take to the Jumper bay. Supplies were being flow to Manara on a jumper, but no jumpers were staying on the planet.

"What Rodney?" Jennifer sounded annoyed.

"I need… need to talk to you," Rodney said. He had been avoiding her for a while because he could not look at her without his mind drifting to _that fantasy_. The feel of her touching him had felt so real that he could not focus in her presence at first. Walking around in a semi-aroused state whenever he saw her did not put him in the best condition to do his job. After a lot of time and mental discipline, he finally pushed it aside only to find that Jennifer no longer seemed to want spend time with him. _She hasn't spoken to me in a week or spent any time with me in the last month. _

"I'm very busy, Rodney. If you have a splinter or paper cut or stubbed toe, you'll have to deal with it," Jennifer said as she quickly turned away.

There was no one in the corridor around them except Richards, so he stepped closer to her and lifted his hand to grab her arm, but thought twice about it. "Jennifer, I just want you to promise me that you'll stay with Gunny and not… well… wander off. Okay?"

"What are you talking about?" She stopped and turned back to him.

"Promise me you'll stay with Richards," Rodney said with more confidence. _I still promised her dad to protect her and need to follow through._

"Rodney, why are you suddenly concerned about my well-being?" Jennifer asked.

"Because…" _Why are you concerned? _His genius mind was not sure of the answer because he had no baseline, having never had a friend or a girlfriend like her; he really was clueless about his feelings.

"Rodney, I really don't have time," Jennifer sighed, losing some of the anger in her voice and body language.

"Just promise you'll stay with Richards," Rodney said afraid once again to say much else. "Sheppard sent me to tell you that."

"Sheppard?" Jennifer looked questioningly at him.

"Yes," Rodney said.

"He was acting really weird on the planet. He almost came to blows with Smeadon." Jennifer's brow furrowed.

"Really?" Rodney was concerned now. "Maybe you shouldn't go. I mean… we do have four grounding station to take out. And it will be pretty boring after that, just Elizabeth, Sheppard and I along with a couple guards. We could… hang out."

"Rodney, I have to go. I made the agreement with Smeadon and Elizabeth put me in charge of the evacuation," Jennifer said with the first hint of a smile. "I run around the city, so I know where two of those stations are and don't want to race there, disconnect the lighting rods and then run back before getting zapped in the hallways."

Rodney smiled and laughed. _That's my Jennifer._ "I wouldn't give you one of the long distance ones. I'll save those for Sheppard."

"I won't tell him," Jennifer smiled. "I'm sorry, but I can't. Everyone is counting on me."

"All right, but we'll catch up when you get back," Rodney said still smiling.

"I don't know, Rodney," Jennifer said as she looked away. "I've got a lot of work and… well…"

Rodney stared at Jennifer as she stammered and tried to avoid his eyes, leaving him feeling cold. Women rejected him all the time with Samantha Carter turning it into an art form, but coming from Jennifer it felt so much worse. _She's trying to let you down gently._

"I need to go," Jennifer said and grabbed his arm. "I'll grab you when I get back for a meal, okay?"

"Wha… Okay," Rodney could not help but smile. _She's not totally blowing you off._

"Great, see you when I get back," she said. "And if it makes you feel better, it will be pretty boring on Manara, too."

Jennifer smiled and turned to join Richards as they headed to the jumper bay. Rodney felt better as he headed off to find Elizabeth and John. _Jennifer still wants to spend time with you._

* * *

_So much for forgetting about him. He comes to you with puppy-dog eyes and you can't refuse him._ Jennifer could never hurt Rodney's feelings or reject him outright. He meant too much to her, but she could not go back to being his _occasional_ friend. _He is going to have to decide what we are or aren't._

Once Jennifer and Richards got everyone organized, they had a quick meeting with Peter, who was effectively in charge, along with Halling, Amanda Cole, Radek and Bates. Once Ford and Carson returned from the Mainland, they would assume control of the military and medical on Manara.

Seeing that the first of the scientists and a large group of Athosians were heading to the gate, Jennifer said, "I'd better go with Parker and get things settled with the Manarans."

"Mace!" Richards called to the young man standing near the gate as Jennifer stood nearby.

"Gunny?" He said.

"We'll only dial in if there is a problem," Richards said to the young man. "So don't open the gate for anyone else."

"Of course, sir," Mace said with obvious annoyance.

"Never know when you'll be tested, so stay on your guard," Gunny said as he turned to leave.

Jennifer could not help but smile at the handsome young man, who looked fearful. "He's just joking. I won't let him run drills from Manara through the wormhole."

"Thank you, ma'am, and… well… I'm really sorry about what happened…" he started.

"It's fine, Sergeant," Jennifer said. "I shouldn't have wandered off anyways."

"Thank you, ma'am," Mace said with a smile.

Jennifer smiled back and turned to leave with Richards and the first wave of displaced Lanteans.

TBC

* * *

**A/N: Going to end up with a 3-part story. Giving Jennifer & Gunny a chapter of their own on Manara. If you want to go straight to Eye, you will have to wait a while. Sorry, but a lot of folks seem to like Sergeant Richards, so I'll stick more of him in here.**


	16. Shelter

**MGM owns all characters except OCs. Some dialogue taken from GateWorld**

**Thanks always to my partner-in-crime, scr1 and dwparsnip.**

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews and of course all the positives about Gunnery Sergeant Richards. Also, I cleared 100,000 words with my last chapter, that's an average size novel. Thank you all so much for your feedback that keeps me going.**

**

* * *

Immediately after Sheppard and Jennifer leave Manara**

Smeadon took a device out of a drawer and switched it on. "Relay Station Two, prepare to receive a transmission."

"Relay Station Two awaiting transmission. Over," a male voice came over the radio.

One of Smeadon's advisors stepped into the room from behind a blood red curtain with a look of boredom on his face.

Smeadon acknowledged the younger man and spoke into the radio with a grin, "I need you to relay a message to Cowen of the Genii. Tell him we have something to trade."

"So, Uncle, I see you are not going to align us with the Atlanteans?" Javone said as he walked to the table and sat down.

"I would have until Major Sheppard showed up." Smeadon was still fuming.

"I don't know why you didn't take the woman the last time she was here," his nephew said as he rested his boots on the table and grabbed a piece of fruit from a bowl. "Those barbarians and stupid soldiers with her before would have done nothing to stop you because they trusted us. Now, she won't be coming back."

"Oh, Doctor Jennifer Keller will return return here because she feels our alliance is based on her _negotiating_ skills," Smeadon said with a grin on his face. _Beauty and brains never go together._

"Minister," one of his aides said as he entered the room. "The Genii have responded already. They are sending someone within the hour."

"Thank you," Smeadon said waving a hand of dismissal.

"The Genii, Uncle," Javone said eating his fruit. "Is that really wise? They will just as soon slit our throats as trade with us."

"The Genii are powerful enough to defeat the Atlanteans. Cowen will be happy to get his revenge and will give us whatever we want," Smeadon said as greed filled his eyes.

"Well, be sure to get more than the girl out of them," he said chuckling. Javone was well aware of his uncle's tastes and usually benefited from the older man's dalliances once they were tossed aside. "Would be nice to see the city of the Ancestors, though. Perhaps the Genii will take it over and we can visit."

"Do not be a fool," Smeadon said. "I do this to protect our people not to swear allegiance to Cowen and his minions. Knowing we are allies, the Genii will share some of their advanced weapons with us."

"Or realize we will betray anyone for a price and kill us in our sleep," Javone said finishing his fruit and tossing the core onto the floor for the servants to clean.

* * *

Jennifer stood with Sergeant Richards, Peter Grodin, Radek Zelenka and Amanda Cole watching people settle into the large grain storage building and onto locations outside on the ground. The temperature was mild, like a mid-summer night on Earth, so many people wanted to be under the stars.

Jennifer had hoped to be in a facility on the other side of the city where the gate was, but Javone, who was an aid to the minister, said those were in use. Bates was not happy about it either and ordered Marines to patrol the perimeter of their temporary _compound_.

Manaran soldiers, who were sent to get them settled _or_ keep an eye on them, were posturing and strutting around trying to intimidate the Atlanteans. She saw many soldiers laughing and polishing their P90s. Most of the Manarans they ran into looked unhappy they were there and Jennifer knew it was to be expected. _We just started trading with them last month and now we're moving in. _

"Radek is the keeper of the clock. He'll let us know when it's time to call back to Atlantis," Peter said to Amanda, who had asked when they would need to dial back.

"If he doesn't oversleep," Jennifer said smiling. Radek had told her he could not wait to have nothing to do, so he could catch up on sleep.

The Czech smiled at her, "Yes, sleeping on the hard floor of a building reminds me of my childhood."

"Doctor Keller," Sergeant Stackhouse jogged over to her. "Jumper Two did not make it back to Atlantis. Sergeant Mace said the storm is going to hit soon, so they must have stayed behind."

"Who was on Jumper Two?" Jennifer said with her heart sinking.

"Doctor Beckett, Lieutenant Ford, and Teyla," Stackhouse said with concern on his handsome features. "I'm sure they just stayed on the mainland. A jumper could ride out the storm. Billy and me were the last ones to go and I know Teyla was still looking for some people, so I'm pretty sure that's what happened."

"Of course," Jennifer said nodding to the young soldier. _Carson hates to fly. I'm sure he stayed behind._ She turned until she located Halling in the crowd. "I'd better tell the Athosians." Jennifer walked toward the Athosian with Richards on her heels.

She felt like telling the Sergeant to back off, but it _was_ comforting to have him around. _Especially if I have to deal with Smeadon. _She did not like Minister Smeadon and her last visit left her feeling almost dirty by the time she left. _I know he was checking me out, I never actually caught him, but I just know it._ _With Richards armed to the teeth, there would be no trouble this time._ She had seen the soldier putting several knives and handguns in various hidden holsters and sheaths along with his visible P90 and Beretta before they left Atlantis.

"So, Gunny," Jennifer said with her sweetest voice. "You ever going to tell me where you're from? I'm guessing a mid-westerner like me by your accent."

Richards was looking around as always. The man never let his guard down if he was on duty and Jennifer did not expect him to answer her. She could not hide her shock when he did.

"Cedar Rapids, Iowa, ma'am," Richards said.

"I knew it!" Jennifer almost shouted. "Us farm folks always band together."

A brief twitch of his mouth caused Jennifer's grin to widen. She had not felt happiness for a long time, stress about work and Rodney left her with a fake front for everyone to see and a lot of turmoil underneath. For the stoic Sergeant Richards to tell her something personal was almost as gratifying as the few hugs she got from Rodney. Almost, but she still had a crush on the cantankerous astrophysicist and no matter how annoyed or hurt she felt by him, he still occupied her thoughts and dreams.

"Yes, ma'am," the Sergeant said.

"Doctor Keller," Halling said running toward them, "Jinto and Wex are missing."

"Again?" Jennifer said not doing a good job of hiding her annoyance with the boys.

* * *

"We're on it Halling," Dwayne Richards said and hit his radio. "Sergeant Bates, we have two missing Athosian children, Jinto and Wex. We need to locate them."

"Understood Gunny," Bates said over the radio.

Sergeant Richards scanned the area and saw dozens of places two eleven-year old boys would run to in the immediate vicinity. Knowing Doctor Keller would want to be involved in the search, he called in reinforcements. "Stackhouse and Warrington report to my location."

"Isn't Sergeant Bates organizing the search?" Doctor Keller asked. "I've been meaning to ask you about that. I know you're part of security, but don't you outrank Sergeant Bates?"

"No, ma'am. Gunnery Sergeants are lower than Master Sergeants. And Bates is organizing the search, I called the boys to help you and I do our own search," Richards said. He watched her eyebrows raise and a smile spread over her face as she realized he was not going to keep her from finding the kids. Normally, he would never be this relaxed when on duty, but felt a bond with the young genius. _Has to be because we both had to grow up too fast._

Among the senior staff, she was the most approachable to not just him, but most other soldiers. Major Sheppard and Doctor Weir clashed with Sumner, so a lot of people hold a grudge, not to mention Sheppard had to kill Sumner. Doctor Beckett was so clueless about the military; it was hard to imagine how he would survive on a difficult mission and no one wanted to find out. Doctor Rodney McKay had few friends in general and his apparent closeness to Doctor Keller did not help his standing with all the young men who wanted her attention.

"Gunny," Stackhouse said as Warrington fell in behind him.

Tommy Stackhouse was a good soldier. He was one of the first to volunteer for the gene therapy and it worked on him, so his days of being a traditional Marine were over. The young man from Colorado was now flying jumpers and learning how to control the chair on Atlantis. Warrington was a SGC veteran and followed orders with no questions asked, so Dwayne always relied on him.

"So Bates will let us do our own search outside of his authority?" Jennifer asked again. The young woman was always curious about how the military operated. She said her dad was in the Naval Reserves, but by the time she was old enough to know what he was doing, he was out.

"Of course. Now, these kids love to pretend they're soldiers like us, so they won't be too easy to find," Dwayne said as the men and Jennifer all chuckled. _Jinto idolized Major Sheppard and most likely was pretending to fly something or hunt Wraith._

"Too bad I don't have any candy on me, that usually works to lure boys out of hiding," Jennifer said.

"And grown men too, Doc," Tommy said jokingly.

"Stackhouse, you'll take point." _Always gotta stay on top of him._ The young man had a big crush on the young doctor and it was no secret. _At least she's not interested._

"Sure Gunny," Stackhouse said with obvious annoyance at being sent away from Jennifer.

"Doctor Keller is with me. Warry, you're on our six," Richards said. She fell in next to him as he scanned the buildings.

"Sure thing, Gunny," the big man from Bermuda said as he fell back.

"Do you think we should contact the Manarans to help us look for them?" Jennifer asked.

"No, they're not happy we're here, so no need to involve them further," Dwayne said. "Let's go down that alleyway closest to the field where the Athosians are settling down for the night. A nice dark place for boys to lose their way."

"Speaking from experience?" Jennifer asked.

Because he genuinely liked Jennifer, as well as, admired her courage and devotion to the mission and everyone around her, he gave her more information about himself. He had been so far removed from emotional entanglements that it felt _forced_ to share something, but he did it for her. "I hid in many a corn field in my day."

"So you really were on a farm. I mean, Cedar Rapids is a city, so you could have been a city kid," the physician said.

"Grandparents had a big farm. We were there every weekend and all summer," Dwayne said as he scanned the area more closely.

"Mine, too," Jennifer said.

They walked quietly for a while and Jennifer asked aloud, "I wonder what Rodney and the others are doing on Atlantis?"

"Sleeping," Richards offered and the physician laughed.

"Rodney wanted me to stay with them, but honestly watching him and John try to one-up the other around Doctor Weir did not appeal to me," she said chuckling.

_Does she think he's are interested in Weir?_ Richards raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her for a minute before looking around.

"You seem surprised. Have you watched them around her? It's like two little boys trying to get their mother to say which one is her favorite," Jennifer said and he could not hold in some laughter. "Don't laugh. My uncle George and my dad who were in their forties at the time still vied for my grandmother's attention."

"So you don't think he's interested in her?" Richards had to ask to see Jennifer's reaction.

"What? Rodney interested in Elizabeth? As in… you know… like… Um, a girlfriend?" Jennifer looked truly shocked and a flash of concern quickly washed over her face, which was lit by the lanterns the Manaran street was lined with.

"Doctor McKay wouldn't be distracted by such things as a woman," Richards said with a smile that he hid from the young woman, who suddenly tensed at his side. The older man knew the truth about her and Rodney; they loved one another, but were too _smart_ to notice it. _The signs were visible if they stopped being geniuses and started being a man and a woman who were attracted to each other._ _McKay was beginning to realize it and it scared the hell out of him, as it should. A woman like Jennifer never comes along in most men's lifetimes, the perfect combination of intelligence, humor, compassion and beauty, with enough innocence thrown in to make you want to lock her away forever. The poor man has no clue what to do with her. Simple, tell her how you feel_, but Dwayne had been around long enough to know that was not possible out here.

"Hey," Jennifer said as she suddenly ran at a small figure darting between two buildings across from their current position.

Stackhouse started running after the kid as well, shouting, "Jinto! Wex! Stop!"

For the first time in his life, Richards was distracted while on patrol. Mentally kicking himself, he ran to catch up with Jennifer. "Doctor Keller, Stackhouse will get them."

"I saw Jinto and he…" Jennifer's voice stopped as she collided with a big man, who had just stepped around the corner. The man's hands grabbed her arms and held her up as she stumbled back.

"I'm so sorry," Jennifer said as she steadied herself by grasping the large man's forearms. "I was after…" Her voice trailed off when she looked up at him.

The instant Richards saw him, his twenty plus years of training in the Marine Corp as a Reconnaissance Marine and Black Ops specialist told him this man was evil. He towered over Jennifer in height and breadth; with his body draped in a black trench coat.

The man's cold eyes looked at Richards, who stared back as soon as he stepped up to them. The Marine took Jennifer by the shoulder tugging her away from the other man with his left hand while his right hung loosely near his side arm. His P90 was dangling from its strap if it was needed.

"Sorry, miss. I hope I didn't hurt you," the man said in a voice devoid of emotion. He never looked at Jennifer once Richards arrived, his brown eyes took in the weapons and Richard's stance without blinking. Dwayne's gray eyes took in the way the man held himself and the fact that something was poorly concealed under his coat.

"Doctor Keller, Sergeant Warrington is behind us, so join him," Dwayne said quietly. He could not look at Jennifer, so he silently prayed she would listen to him like she usually did.

"No harm done to the little lady," the man said releasing her arms.

"I'll be the judge of that," Dwayne said in a deathly quiet voice.

"Best keep your people together," the man said as he nodded his head and walked down the street; his eyes still locked with Richards until he turned the corner.

A feeling like someone walked on his grave passed through the Marine. _This man was not a Manaran unless they have killers wandering around here._

Stackhouse was dragging the two boys by their collars and telling them, harshly, not to do that again toward him. Gunny did not look away from the street the man went down. It headed toward the Stargate and a desire to follow him was strong, but Richards was protecting Jennifer. _Direct orders from Sheppard and no way I'm bringing her anywhere near that guy._

"Sergeant Bates, we have the kids," Richards said into his earwig. "Stackhouse, let's get them back."

* * *

Jennifer practically ran to Warrington. Never in her life had she felt such terror from another human being only looking at her. It was almost as bad as the Wraith. His eyes were dead and they looked through her, causing the hair on her neck to stand up. This man did not seem like the snobbish Manarans she had met. _He seemed like… What?_ Jennifer honestly had never felt this way before and it terrified her.

"I hope Gunny will be okay," she said aloud.

"What, Doc?" Warrington asked.

"Oh, nothing. Just thinking out loud," Jennifer said trying to act like nothing _too_ different happened.

She turned in time to see the dark figure walk down a street heading toward the Stargate and the Minister's residence. Stackhouse was walking down the street with Wex and Jinto, so she jogged up to them.

"Will you boys stop wandering off?" Jennifer scolded the boys as she caught Richard's eyes.

"Let's keep everyone together," Richards said.

_He looks really concerned._ Jennifer swallowed and suddenly realized she was not going to get any sleep.

* * *

Six hours later, Jennifer, Richards and at least a dozen others sat around as the sun rose. People were waking up and some still trying to sleep. The Marines were stationed around the field and at the doors of the building they were using. They told no one other than Peter that they increased security because they did not want to cause unnecessary alarm.

Adira had a few issues with her pregnancy because of the move, so Jennifer stayed near her for most of the night. The doctor had no sleep once she returned to her friends, who were talking about what might be going on back on Atlantis.

"I predict most of the city will be flooded," Brendan Gaul said laughing as he looked at Radek.

"You're joking, right?" Jennifer said. "You do realize two of the smartest people in either galaxy agreed upon something?"

"You and Radek?" Isabelle Dumais said with a smile, as the Czech started coughing.

"No, Rodney and Radek," Jennifer said with a smile, noting that Radek was sitting close to the French engineer. _I wonder…_ "If Radek and Rodney agree on something, it will work."

"She has a point," Peter Grodin said. "But still, I'm sure some of the city will get flooded. We're going to have a soggy home to return to."

"I think that's the first time I heard someone refer to Atlantis as home," Jennifer said as she thought about the city and had to admit Peter had a point. "And I have to agree."

"No offense, but I miss the food back in my real hometown," Billy Markham said.

"The food is not that great in Boston," Stackhouse said.

"I didn't know you were from Boston," Jennifer said to the baby-faced soldier sitting next to Stackhouse.

"Yes, ma'am," he said. "Tommy, you're a loser. We have the best food. Better than buffalo burgers in Colorado by a long shot. Gotta love our chowda."

"Well, I'm from Andover," Brendan Gaul said quickly. The astrophysicist smiled and glanced away when Jennifer caught his eye.

"I was ten years at Harvard and MIT, so I know the Boston area," she said.

"Where are you from, Doctor Keller?" Markham asked.

"Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin," she said proudly. _This feels like a slumber party, I think._ The bookworm never went to a slumber party as a child. When little girls played with dolls, Jennifer was pretending to operate on them.

"How about you, Doctor Grodin?" Jennifer said trying to involve more people.

"Caterham, England," he said.

"No way!" Jennifer almost shouted. "My dad's dreamed of driving or better yet, owning a Caterham 7 Roadsport."

"And most of my family, but not me," Peter said shaking his head. "I'm not much of a fan of cars. Surprised you'd know about them, actually."

"My dad builds cars. He owns a garage and loves to tinker with and build cars," she said, but before she could say anything else, Kanaan and Halling approached.

"We are sorry to disturb you, but we wanted to talk to Doctor Grodin and Doctor Keller," Halling said as he nodded to the others.

"Sure. Is something wrong?" Jennifer asked as Richards pulled her up from the ground where she was sitting.

"We do not know," Kanaan said as he stepped away from the others with Halling, Richards, Grodin and Sergeant Bates following them. "Doran is missing."

"What?" Jennifer asked as fear immediately went through her. She had never been closely attuned with her feelings to say she had intuition. Most things usually escaped her except the obvious like Stackhouse's crush on her or Kavanagh's dislike of her. _I've been having a bad feeling a lot today, _but her _feelings _felt as real to her as the fact that the sun was rising.

"When was he last seen?" Richards said immediately looking at Bates, who nodded.

"He was seen by his partner, Marta, last night. She went to sleep and awoke he had not returned all night. She said he went with some Manarans," Halling explained.

"Does Doran know anyone here?" Richards asked.

"Doran and I came here two times before our trip with Doctor Keller and were never allowed to remain long enough to meet anyone," Halling said.

Jennifer _knew_ something bad happened. _That creepy guy who looked like he came out of a horror movie last night and now the disappearance of a high-ranking Athosian last night. _The thoughts made her stomach twist and a cold chill pass over her. "Let's talk to Minister Smeadon."

"I'm not sure how helpful the Manarans will be," Bates said.

"Well, if he was last seen with Manarans, they need to help us find him." Jennifer was adamant they go to see their _hosts_.

* * *

"Ah, Doctor Keller, it is good to see you. I am sorry you could not join me for dinner in the evening. I hope the sick woman is well?" Minister Smeadon said as he looked at Jennifer like she was a treat to eat.

Suddenly, Richards knew why the Major was upset when he returned from Manara yesterday. _He wanted to know how I allowed Jennifer to be subjected to this. _

Without caring about protocol, Richards stepped in front of his charge and said to the leader with no subtlety whatsoever, "We know some Manarans were with him. We also know you snobby sons-of-bitches want nothing to do with the Athosians, so tell us where he is or we will tear your town apart looking for him."

"Sergeant Richards!" Jennifer hissed from behind him as she grabbed his arm and tried to spin him so she could see his face. "Minister, I apologize for…"

_No way is she apologizing to him._ "Doctor Keller, why don't you wait outside?"

Richards imagined he was alone with Smeadon. It would not take him long to get the pig screaming for his life. _He'll have no tolerance for pain. He's way too soft._

"Gunny," she started again tugging on his arm.

His grey eyes never left Smeadon's face as the older man swallowed hard and glanced at his guards.

Halling and Kanaan stood behind Richards on the right; they were armed with the traditional knives the Athosians preferred and handguns issued by Sergeant Bates. Carter, Yamamoto, Stackhouse and Markham, along with Doctor Grodin, who also accompanied them, were behind him and to his left. Richards wanted the Manarans to see their firepower and their strength, so he brought four other Marines.

Because the other man was a coward and used to preying on weaker, innocent victims, he looked away and said, "It is embarrassing for me to tell you, but Doran was detained for drunken behavior in one of our taverns."

"That is a lie," Kanaan said stepping forward. "Doran would never be in a tavern."

"Kanaan," Halling grabbed the younger man.

"Minister," Jennifer said finally stepping next to Richards. "We would like to see Doran. I am a physician. If he is ill, I might be able to help him."

Dwayne put his hand on her arm. If things go badly, he wanted her close to him. Markham and Stackhouse moved up closer at this sign that something might be going south.

The four guards in the room had no guns that he could see. It was impossible to know how many guards were hidden behind the curtain, but he was certain they would not be much of a threat. _Smeadon was unarmed and would be an easy hostage to take, if it was necessary._

"I will bring you to him, Doctor Keller," the Minister said looking at one of his aides. "Since he is under guard for a crime, I cannot permit your soldiers to accompany you. Doctor Grodin may accompany you if he wishes..."

"You bring him here or we go get him," Richards said. _This bastard was lying through his teeth. No way is Jennifer going anywhere with you._

"I told you, he's being detained…" Smeadon began.

"So we will deal with him, then," Jennifer said in a firm voice. "If we had one of your people for breaking our laws, wouldn't you want him returned? As a gesture of good will between our people, bring him to us."

Richards looked down at Jennifer for a moment. All the niceties she showed Minister Smeadon before were gone. _Looks like she smells a rat too. Smart girl._ When he looked at Smeadon, he saw hatred in the man's eyes then a calm settled over his face.

"Very well, I'll have him brought to you as soon as we can," he moved to leave.

"In half-an-hour or we'll be looking for him," Richards said.

Smeadon said nothing and nodded for them to leave, which they did. Richards never stopped looking around for someone to jump out of a corner. His concern for Jennifer's safety jumped exponentially._ This man wanted Doctor Keller and there was no doubt what for. _Keeping a hand on her arm he rushed them out of the building.

"You think he did something to Doran, too, don't you?" Jennifer asked as they hurried along.

"Can someone tell me what just happened back there?" Peter asked breathing hard as he tried to keep up.

"Smeadon lied to us," Jennifer said. "Something's happened to Doran."

"We will organize our people to search," Halling said. "And, once again, I wish to thank you Doctor Keller and Sergeant Richards for remaining our loyal friends."

"No need to organize your people. Some of our people are already looking for him," Richards said.

Jennifer looked confused as she looked at him. "You had people searching already?"

"Yes, I wanted to get a read on Smeadon, but didn't think for a minute that he'd be honest with us." Richards hit his radio and called Bates. "Sergeant Bates, the Manarans have Doran, but we don't know where."

"Gunny, you better get over here. We're near a storage facilities behind the settlement in what looks like a park."

"What did you find?" Richards already knew the answer.

"What is it?" Jennifer's voice asked from near his shoulder where she had been eavesdropping.

"Not sure, but I think it's Doran," Bates said in a quiet voice. "Someone cut him up pretty badly."

Richards knew who did it. _He was right in front of me._ "Assemble the men, Sergeant. We gotta get to the Stargate as soon as possible."

"What's going on?" Jennifer said with obvious fear in her voice.

"They found Doran. He's dead." There was no doubt to Richards the cut up body was the Athosian. And Richards knew why.

"Oh no," Jennifer's hands rose to her mouth and her eyes teared up. "How?"

"Don't know. Listen, we need to dial Atlantis," Richards said. He was torn between his duty to protect her and the desire to determine what was going on in Atlantis.

"Why?" Jennifer asked.

Peter Grodin, along with Halling and Kanaan were watching him talk with the young doctor.

"Doctor Zelenka, is it time to dial?" Richards radioed the Czech.

"No, not for two more hours," Radek said. "The storm might still be going on."

"Understood," Dwayne said. He saw Bates running to him, with Warrington behind him.

Richards walked away from the crowd with Jennifer close by. He did not want her to hear this because he knew she would be upset, but he had to keep her with him and brief Bates.

* * *

"Gunny, what is it?" Jennifer said a little breathlessly.

She had not slept at all because of concern for Adira and thoughts of Rodney. _It was foolish to be mad at him._

"I know why Doran was singled out?" Richards asked her.

She noticed Bates looking confused, so she replied, "Why?"

"I saw Halling give the GDO to Doran when we left Atlantis," Richards said.

"Oh my God!" Jennifer turned and ran towards the Stargate. She had no real agenda; just get back home as soon as possible to see Rodney. In that instant, the creepy guy, Doran missing and Smeadon's behavior all clicked. _This was a massive set-up to get access to Atlantis._ How the Manarans found out they were from Atlantis was unknown. _Perhaps they figured it out or they tortured Doran into telling them._

"Jennifer!" A strong hand grabbed her upper arm pulling her up short. Turning to see Richards, she realized he called her name. Never, could she remember, him referring to her as anything but Doctor Keller or ma'am.

"We will take care of this. At this moment we have no idea if they went to Atlantis or not or what they would want with the device. Perhaps they will sell the GDO to the Wraith," the Sergeant said holding on to her arm tightly. "You need to calm down."

"I just know something terrible happened," Jennifer said panicking.

"Jennifer, we need to contact Atlantis, so we will find out how things are," Richards said and looked deeply into her eyes.

She tried to calm down under the stare of his intense grey eyes, but could not. A panic unlike any she felt previously filled her. Swallowing and taking deep breaths did nothing to calm her racing heart or shaking body. _Something terrible has happened to my friends and Rodney, I just know it._

"We need to get Zelenka and Grodin to meet us at the Stargate to dial Atlantis," Richards was saying to Bates. "And more Marines."

_This was Richards's expertise._ If Atlantis were compromised, everyone would look to the veteran Special Forces Marine to guide them. Jennifer tried not to panic, but the only person to make her feel calm in the middle of chaos was not with her.

"Move out," Richards said to the few Marines with them. "Jennifer you need to stay with me. If the Manarans are responsible for something happening on Atlantis, things might get interesting at the gate."

"Understood," Jennifer said and fell in behind him.

The walk to the gate was quick and uneventful. There were a couple Manarans near the gate, but none of them looked armed. She recognized one of them as Javone, the aid that helped them to settle when they arrived.

"I can see by your weapons that you figured out my uncle has changed alliances," the man said as he strolled casually to them.

"What are you talking about?" Jennifer asked as Radek and Peter arrived with Bates and at least a six more Marines.

"You remember the Genii?" He asked. "And how you upset them, well they have been wanting to locate Atlantis for a couple months and your stupid Athosian friend gave them the means via my uncle of course."

"What!" Jennifer yelled as she heard Kanaan and Halling growling at his insult of their dead friend.

"A small strike force went through the gate about six hours ago," he said casually.

"Radek, dial Atlantis!" Jennifer shouted as fear gripped her more tightly. The slight trembling became full-blown shaking of her legs making it almost impossible to stand up. Trying to keep all thoughts from her head, she stared at Radek as he approached the DHD surrounded by soldiers. The Manaran just watched casually, like this was nothing unusual to see.

Once the DHD lit up, no wormhole formed. Staring at them with concern on his face, Radek spoke the obvious. "I cannot establish a connection to Atlantis."

**

* * *

A/N:** **If you want to know what Richards looks like, watch _Suspicion_. When they are on the planet to capture the Wraith, there's an older soldier with Teyla behind a rock. He's got some grey hair that's Richards. Warrington is the Marine who stops Teyla from going up the stairs in Suspicion as well if you want to know who he is. He's usually w/ Gunny in these stories.**


	17. The Eye

**MGM owns all characters except OCs.**

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews and to my betas, scr1 & dwparsnip. **

* * *

Richards saw Jennifer trembling and knew she was losing it. _After all that has happened over the last six months, to be helplessly trapped while those you care about or love, even, are in danger, if not dead already, had to be too much for the young girl from Chippewa Falls._

Many more Atlanteans and Athosians had come over to the gate after they saw Marines running that way. His eyes landed on Amanda Cole, the Air Force doctor, and friend of Jennifer's.

"Captain Cole," he called her over.

"Sergeant Richards," she said as she approached. Jennifer turned and looked at her colleague.

"Take my side arm, ma'am," he said as he pulled a gun out of the holster he wore on his back under his vest. "I was ordered by Major Sheppard not to let Doctor Keller out of my sight while on Manara, but I'm afraid I have to."

"Understood," Amanda took the gun and looked at Jennifer. Being a military doctor, she knew what needed to be done.

"What's going on?" Jennifer asked, but this time Richards was not going to answer her.

Nodding to Warrington, the big Sergeant from Bermuda moved to stand behind the Manaran named Javone. Bates and Carter flanked the man as they waited for Gunny to speak.

"How big is the strike team?" His mind was blank at the moment. Every ounce of his energy was focused on the man in front of him. The need to understand everything he said and did not say was Richards' only purpose at the moment. _Others protected Doctor Keller, so I can gather intel without being distracted._

Javone, who had seemed almost bored up until now, focused on Gunny and said with a little more life in his voice, "About twenty, being led by the most vicious of Cowen's commanders: Kolya."

_Kolya._ Dwayne knew that name would be his target until he was neutralized. "Weapons?"

"Normal Genii guns, I believe," Javone said. "They do not have weapons like you have."

Dwayne got all he needed from the man. Glancing to the other soldiers, they moved away from the Manaran and the rest of the Atlanteans. Looking back at Jennifer to ensure she was still secured, he saw Radek Zelenka with an arm around her shoulders and Peter Grodin speaking to her. Doctor Cole stood a distance away looking at the Manarans, who were separated from them by two Marines. _Looks like the Captain remembers her military training. Keep an eye on your enemy_

Several other Marines and some Air Force soldiers surrounded him now. Atlantis had few soldiers below the rank of Sergeant to ensure experience and a certain skill level. These particular soldiers also had extensive SGC or Special Forces experience and had been picked to be the Atlantis strike team by Colonel Sumner.

"Assuming Doctor Zelenka will get a lock on Atlantis when we dial back," Gunny continued, "We'll send someone through. The nearest corridor to the Stargate is fifty feet."

"You realize if the shield is turned on, they'd die?" Bates questioned him. Keith Bates was good at security, but Dwayne did not like the man. Certain he did not hide that fact well enough from a superior in rank; Gunny did not get upset with the questioning.

"Yes, I do," Richards said. "Reclaiming Atlantis is our number one priority. _Your_ number one priority is the safety of our people."

Bates nodded, so Richards continued. "The soldier will carry a radio and leave it on. If he does not make it, we'll know the shield is up and will have to evacuate to the Alpha Site. If the soldier makes it through the wormhole, we'll hear it and go as quickly as possible to ensure they don't put up the shield."

"If you get through the shield, then what? You'd be sitting ducks," Bates said interrupting again.

"We'll go in a wedge formation with Gunny in the middle," Warrington said. "He's the one who'll have the best chance of neutralizing everyone. The rest of us are cannon fodder, so to speak."

Silence permeated the air after Warrington finished. To hear it put so plainly that these men were going to die for him only added to the hatred he felt for Kolya and the Genii. Richards inhaled deeply and allowed himself a couple of thoughts before telling Doctor Grodin of his plan. His mind returned to the Gateroom in Atlantis, counting the number of steps from the gate to the stairs and down to the corridor. Imagining where he would put the guards and where he would be if he were Kolya.

"Gunny?" Jennifer called out as she walked toward them. "Doctor Zelenka would like to redial. He said the gate could have been overcharged by the electrical current or active when we called."

_It looks like she calmed down._ "I was going to tell Doctor Grodin our plan and then we are good to go."

The tension in the air was thick as they stood, ten minutes later, outside the gate. Sergeant Carter had the radio and would be first. The other six men, including Warrington, formed a tight formation with P90s held ready for battle around Richards. If the mission was successful, Richards would call back for reinforcements and the next wave of six would go through. Dwayne nodded to Zelenka and in turn, Peter and Jennifer, who was pale and bit her lip, as they waited for Radek to dial. If he did not call back, they would close the wormhole and send the second wave to the Alpha Site to ensure it was not compromised.

The sound of each chevron encoding reminded Richards of bells tolling for each second left of their lives. Waiting as he had so many times before to die, Richards thought of his family, the younger brother and sister he once had and their escapades on his grandfather's farm. The innocence of that life was so foreign to him now that he resurrected the memory in case it was his last. _The afterlife won't be as pleasant for me as those days were._

When the Kawhoosh came, they stepped up to the gate quickly. Carter lifted his P90 and prepared to step through when a voice came over the radio.

"Identify yourself," the voice of Aiden Ford said.

"Aiden!" Jennifer yelled into a radio she grabbed off of Stackhouse, who was close to her.

"Doctor Keller?"

"What's the situation?" Jennifer asked and everyone in the crowd held their breath.

"We had some company, but they're gone now. Doctor Beckett might have a concussion and we could all do with some sleep, but otherwise, we're good."

A cheer rang through the crowd and Richards saw tears on the face of Doctors Keller and Zelenka. _Two kind-hearts in this awful place._ Once again, he knew it was his place in the universe to protect people like that and it brought him some happiness to know that they would be safe for another day.

* * *

Jennifer stepped out in Atlantis several minutes later with Richards at her side and security officers in front of her. The desire to see everyone with her own eyes caused her to almost run once she stepped through.

"Welcome back," John called down from the upper balcony where he stood with Rodney and Elizabeth.

She visibly sagged after seeing them and tears welled up again. Richards must have seen her reaction and said, "We need to debrief and then you can crash."

"Of course," she said, but the thought of reliving what happened on Manara did not appeal to her. "I'd like to see Carson, first."

"Understood," he walked with her up to the control room because the Scot could be seen sitting on a chair near Aiden and some Athosian youths. A red-haired woman was close by with Teyla and they both looked like they had been in a fight.

Amanda, Peter, Radek and Bates were close behind Jennifer and Gunny as the entered the control room. Jennifer could not help herself and ran to hug Carson immediately.

"I'm all right, love. I trust you're okay?" He said as he wrapped her in a big bear hug and squeezed her tightly to him.

"Aiden said you had a concussion," she moved back and looked into his eyes.

"Just a nasty bump," he said, but Jennifer saw his pupils with her naked eye.

"No, I think it's more than that," she said.

"I'll take care of him," Amanda said coming beside her with a medical kit. "Check on the others."

Her eyes drifted to John and Rodney behind Elizabeth and ran to them. Throwing her arms around John, who hugged her back, was sure to feed the rumor mill for months. She specifically went to John first for just that reason.

"Hey, you okay?" John asked.

"No. The Manarans betrayed us and killed Doran to get his dialing information," Jennifer said.

"Let's go to the conference room to discuss this. Peter and Sergeant Bates, please join us," Doctor Weir said.

"I think Sergeant Richards should be there, too, ma'am," Bates said.

"Of course," Elizabeth nodded and they headed to the room.

After John released her, Jennifer quickly wrapped her arms around Rodney to hear him hiss before putting his left arm around her. His clothing was damp and he smelled like salt.

"Rodney?" She moved back slightly looking into his face and saw nothing, only a little pain reflected. Fear flashed through her body causing it to tremble. "What is it?"

"Fine. I'm fine," he said looking away, but squeezing her shoulder with his hand. "I'm glad you're safe and stayed with Richards like I asked you to."

"You're wet." Jennifer realized she was clinging to Rodney longer than John, but did not care. _He does not look well._

"We need to get to the briefing," he said removing his left arm and pulling away.

"Doctor McKay," Sergeant Richards said with his deathly serious tone. "Why don't you have Doctor Keller look at your arm?"

"What!" Jennifer turned and noticed Rodney's right arm, which he had been hiding from her wrapped with a great deal of bandage over his jacket. _Rodney's injured and didn't tell me?_

"It's nothing, Gunny," Rodney said as he tugged at the bandage with his other hand. "Because Beckett was out of it, had to do it myself."

"I noticed, which is why I think the doctor should look at it." His voice held the underlying '_or else'_ in check quite well in Jennifer's opinion.

She was not going to let Rodney off so easily. Something had happened to him and he tried to hide it. A calm that always came over her when faced with a medical crisis calmed her racing heart as she walked over to Rodney, took his left arm and led him out of the control room.

* * *

"Rodney, how did this happen?" Jennifer asked as she gathered disinfectants, bandages and heavy-duty scissors to cut his jacket. The walk and transporter ride to the infirmary was the strangest she ever had with Rodney. He refused to look at her and repeatedly said he cut himself on a grounding station. Her grip on his arm and left hand did not let up because she was afraid he would bolt.

"I already told you," he said quietly.

"I need to remove the bandage you put on and see how bad it is underneath. I don't want to have to worry about infection," Jennifer said smiling at her patient.

"Jennifer…" Rodney began but stopped as an emotion she could not read passed over his features. His desire for her to leave was palatable, but Jennifer would not back away.

"What is it?" She asked in her most comforting voice.

"This is not really bad. It's a waste of your time really," he said. "You should be in the briefing."

"The Manarans betrayed us to the Genii and a strike force led by their worse commander came to Atlantis." Jennifer did not look at his face as she told him what she already knew.

Rodney flinched as she cut back the bandage he put on his arm. Under it, the jacket was matted with blood, but a straight line could be seen cutting through the material. _There are no jagged edges like a piece of metal did this. An extremely sharp knife cut through this fabric and the flesh underneath._ The blood had clotted into the material of his shirt and jacket. Rodney whimpered slightly as she removed the cloth so she could clean the wound.

It took every ounce of her medical training not to cry when she finally uncovered his arm underneath the cloth. A cut, at least five inches long and extremely deep ran down his right forearm.

"I'm going to need to stitch this up," she heard herself say as she moved like a robot to get the necessary supplies. Rodney said nothing and did not look at her. Focusing, as only a doctor can on the task at hand, she stitched up his arm and bandaged the wound taking care to ensure she caused him as little pain as possible. Her hands were surprisingly steady considering her thoughts were in turmoil.

"Rodney what happened?" Jennifer asked and in a quiet voice, he told her. She did not interrupt and did not stop her stitching as he explained how Kolya took over the city, killed the guards, Mace and Lieutenant Andrews, threatened Elizabeth and forced him to talk. In a whisper, he said he told of the plan they had to the Genii Commander. His voice broke slightly; as he said he had been concerned Kolya would go after Elizabeth or return to Manara if he did not talk. _Sheppard was still out there and would know what to do_, he had said with more conviction. When Jennifer finally looked up, she saw that his blue eyes were closed and his left hand formed a fist. _Rodney had been tortured and feels guilty for talking._

Trying to soothe his distraught condition, Jennifer agreed that the others would have been tortured. She told him how Doran was found, with knife wounds, and was certain Kolya was behind it as well. He was right that John was going to be able to deal with Kolya and she also reminded him that he was not a soldier, but a scientist and not expected to be tortured.

He nodded after she stopped talking but kept his eyes closed and looked like he was in pain. The injury to Rodney was so severe she was amazed he had not passed out from the pain that bastard, Kolya, caused. Remembering the cold look in the man's eyes sent a shiver through Jennifer. _To think Richards and I could've stopped him and he never would have hurt Rodney. Not sure what I'd do, but Gunny could have._

"I'll give you some painkillers and I order you to get some rest," she said as she turned around to find the physicist was gone.

* * *

Jennifer went looking for Rodney in one of _their_ places, the balcony of the astronomy tower looking out over the city. Rodney's shoulders were slumped and he hung his head in such a defeated manner that it cut right into her heart. She approached him and without a word, slid her arms around his waist pressing herself to him. _I can't believe yesterday I was ready to stop being his friend. _Memories of the times he held her in the past came to her mind as she rested her head on his chest to hear the steady beat of his heart_. The innocence of those days are gone._

She felt Rodney's arms wrap around her in an extremely firm hug allowing her to finally relax and enjoy the feeling of security he always provided for her. This hug was different from their others because she was _comforting_ Rodney this time. _He still would not believe he had acted heroically over the last twenty-four hours_. _I guess my words did not remove the aura of defeat he's wearing._ It tore her heart and she fought once again, as she did in the infirmary while stitching him up, to keep the tears from falling from her eyes.

_If he wants to hold me all night, I'll just stand here._ His hands gripped her jacket for several minutes and she felt his head press against hers. Taking a deep breath only made her more aware of how tightly he held her. "Uh, Rodney… could you loosen up a bit? I do need to breathe."

"Wha… Oh… Of course. I'm sorry," he stammered as he moved his hands to her shoulders to push her away.

"I don't want you to stop." Jennifer looked up into troubled blue eyes. The storm had drifted away from the city allowing the moons to be out in full force before the sun rose in less than an hour. Rodney's face showed that he waged an internal battle. Jennifer was afraid of what the outcome of that battle might be.

"Rodney, you cannot second guess anything. John, Gunny and you all pounded that into my head after the… Wraith attack. It still upsets me and wakes me up most nights, but I don't think about what I could have done differently anymore." She still could not talk about it without shuddering.

Rodney's strong hands still held her shoulders and her own hands rested on either side of his waist. Closing her eyes to get strength, she felt his hands shift. One of them slid around the back of her neck under her hair and the other slid down her right arm. The feel of his slightly calloused hand on the smooth skin of her neck caused her eyes to snap open and see that Rodney's blue eyes were fixed on hers from only inches away. _Is he going to kiss me?_ As soon as the thought popped into her head, she noted his eyes were not staring into her own any longer, but drifted to her mouth.

The romance novels she read when she was a teen always talked about _time standing still_ when a couple shared their first kiss. In Jennifer's case, it was _her_ first kiss not just _their_ first kiss. The moment his breath feathered over her mouth, she could swear time _did_ stand still. Without conscious thought, her tongue wet her lips, which caused Rodney to close his eyes and press his mouth to hers.

As his mouth moved slowly over hers, all thoughts left her brain leaving instinct to take over. Not realizing she did it, her arms found their way up his chest and around his neck. A soft moan came from deep in her throat as his right hand slid into her hair to anchor her head as his mouth changed its tactics. The slight brushing of his lips over hers intensified as he began to nibble at her mouth. First, he captured her upper lip between his and then her lower. The soft moan became more pronounced and lasted longer as she held him tighter. Her legs were shaking and felt like they could not support her weight. Rodney's left arm slid around her waist to keep her on her feet.

A louder moan seemed to push the super genius to the next level in his attack on her mouth. His tongue slid over her parted lips and withdrew to his mouth. He repeated several times, coaxing Jennifer to copy him. At the first tentative touch of her tongue to his lips, he pulled her body even closer, angled her head back slightly with the hand in her hair and finally slid his tongue into her mouth.

* * *

Rodney felt lost when he came to the observatory. After the experience he had, thinking about Jennifer and how lucky it was that she had gone to Manara with Richards was the only good thing his mind could conjure. _You wanted her to stay. What would Kolya have done to her?_ An image of Jennifer being tortured caused him to squeeze his eyes shut and groan.

As soon as the knife touched Rodney's arm, he began to beg and scream. After a few twists, he told them about the plan. The scientist told himself afterwards that Sheppard was still out there with superior weapons and knowledge of Atlantis as an advantage. Trying to make himself feel better, he reasoned that Elizabeth would have been tortured next if he did not talk and then, perhaps Kolya would return to Manara and start torturing others. _I had to keep them safe. The military hates me, so what's another reason for them to think I'm a coward?_

The thought that Jennifer might think less of him was why he fled the infirmary as soon as he could, along with the fact that she pushed him away before he left._ You're all alone, like you've always been. _He wandered Atlantis ignoring calls on his radio and the PA system. Eventually, he ended up here, where he had given Jennifer her birthday gift what felt like an eternity ago.

When she told him in the infirmary that he acted heroically and gave much of the same reasoning he had given himself, he just could not believe she did not think less of him. As her arms slid around him, he felt better in spite of himself. Her contact had a way of healing him more than just her presence. _It seems the longer I know her, the more I need from her._ _A smile and a laugh gave way to spending time together, which led to occasional hugs and…_ His mind thought of what he would like to do with the beautiful woman in his arms, causing him to clutch her jacket to drive away the fantasy that returned of a _forceful_ Jennifer intent on making love to him. He did allow himself one indulgence, resting his head on hers and inhaling her scent, the flowery shampoo that had not run out yet and the smell that was hers alone. It helped make the ache caused by his failings to lessen.

As she spoke to him, he felt the desire to kiss her strengthen, so he started to push her away. _She's trying to make me feel better. If she thought I was a coward, she would not be here._

When she shuddered and closed her eyes while mentioning her attack by the Wraith, months ago, he gave up his battle. After the Hoffan disaster, he stayed away from Jennifer more than he wanted to for fear that he would scoop her up and hide her away in his quarters. Knowing she still suffered nightmares and had difficulty sleeping caused him pain, but his only recourse would have been to spend the night with her. _That was definitely not an option. Got away with it once, but Carson was there._

It had been over six months since they met and each time she was in his arms, it got harder to resist the urge to kiss her. He slid the hand of his injured arm around her neck, feeling the smooth skin and slid the other hand down her arm and around her back against his better judgment. Allowing himself a moment to stare at her beautiful face, he focused on her mouth. The perfectly shaped pink lips drew him in and the moment her tongue flashed over them, he could not hold back any longer.

Since this was _his_ Jennifer he was finally kissing, he did not want to rush it; he was certain that it would be the _only_ opportunity he would ever have. Her immediate surprise and lack of response gave way, as her arms wrapped themselves around his neck and a tiny moan escaped from her throat. Sliding his hand into her silky hair, he began to nibble at her lips. _Her lips are soft and she tastes so sweet. I can't let her go after this._ A shaft of desire speared through him as he sucked on her lower lip and got an immediate response from her.

As she moaned louder and wrapped her arms more tightly around him, thoughts of what this kiss could lead to flooded his mind as his defenses crumbled. He pulled her closer and slid his tongue over her soft lips. Jennifer seemed hesitant at first, but she eventually returned the caresses. The shaft of desire turned into a full-blown wave causing him to slide his tongue into her mouth. A groan issued from deep in his chest as his body ached with longing for the woman in his arms.

The kiss continued for a long time. Neither of them wanted to stop because they each thought it might be the only one they ever shared. Rodney pulled back for air first, only to have Jennifer make an angry sound and pull his mouth back to hers. Shock and then more desire flowed through Rodney as the idea that Jennifer might _want_ this kiss as much as him crossed his mind. _But we're friends and friends don't passionately kiss. Sam Carter only gave you a kiss on the cheek. Jennifer only hugged you a few times. Friends don't kiss like this. Only lovers do._ At that thought, Rodney had to stop this from going further.

Before he stopped though, his tongue probed into Jennifer's mouth repeatedly drawing more and more sounds from the young woman. Rodney tried to memorize each one of them to replay when he was confronted by the horrors of this galaxy. The feel of her silky tongue, smooth lips and even softer body touching him would haunt the genius for years when he tried to sleep, but it was worth it.

Pulling away again and putting her head against his shoulder to keep from kissing her, he said, "Jennifer. I'm sorry, but we have to stop."

"Rodney," Jennifer said with pleading in her voice.

He pulled back; taking a moment to glance at her was the wrong thing to do. Her hair was loose and a slight breeze caught it, blowing it around like a halo around her beautiful face, her lips were swollen from the kisses and her eyes… The whisky brown eyes that haunted his nights were nearly gone, replaced by black. Jennifer's whole body radiated wanting, desire, passion, and it terrified Rodney.

The memory of her avoidance of the last few weeks was still buried under his self-loathing at failing to remain strong at the hands of Kolya and caused him to back up._ If I was that upset when she rejected me before, how will I feel after this? _It was the biggest mistake of his life to kiss her, because he could not imagine ever going back to the way they were over a month ago.

"Jennifer, I'm sorry," he said softly. "I don't know what came over me. I am so very sorry for taking advantage of your comfort and… Well… Um… You know, kissing you."

"Rodney, I'm not mad. I…" Jennifer slid her hand up to hold his face between her small, soft hands.

"No," he said and pulled away from her. "I need to go. You need to get some rest, too. Again, I am so sorry, I can't believe I did that to you. Please forgive me." Before she could answer, he hurried away. His embarrassment and fear of her reaction was too great, so he took the coward's way out.

* * *

Jennifer was stunned. She was still so distracted by the flood of feelings and sensations coursing through her body that she did not know if she was really standing on the top of one of the highest spires in Atlantis or in some alien-induced dream. Closing her mouth and licking her lips, she tasted Rodney. As she took a deep breath to calm her shaking limbs and galloping heart, she smelled Rodney. It was as if he branded her. Never had she imagined a kiss would feel so amazing and never did she think someone would push her away so quickly after it.

_What did I do wrong?_ The inexperienced woman did not know. _He'll probably never talk to you again. _That thought was the final straw it took to break through the shock of the last ten hours. _Smeandon's betrayal. Doran's death. Rodney's torture. Mace and Andrews shot in cold blood. Rodney's rejection._ They were a chorus of taunts directed at her and, as she did when she was young and picked on, she began to cry.

Wandering to the transporter, she stood trying to focus through her tears on a location. _Can't go to Carson, he'd never understand._ Then it came to her. _The one man who would understand because he knows you've never had a relationship before. _

* * *

Standing in front of John Sheppard's door, Jennifer swiped at her face and rang the buzzer. It was still dark outside, but some pink was starting to push the darkness away.

John opened the door in a t-shirt, sweat pants and had an exhausted look on his face. Seeing her tears, he immediately asked, "Jennifer, what's wrong?"

"I…," she started but suddenly had no idea what to say. "I… Can I, come in?"

"Of course," he said stepping aside and reaching over to increase the lighting. "What happened? Did something happen?"

"Yes… I mean no…" Jennifer suddenly realized she was standing in the room of the military commander of Atlantis to talk about his teammate rejecting her. "Oh John, I'm an idiot. I need to go. I should not be bothering you. You just lost men."

She could not keep from crying. _What are you doing here? You're acting like a teenager._

"It's okay," John said reaching out to grab her shoulders and squeeze them lightly. "I've seen men like Gunny crying their eyes out on a battlefield from the stress and adrenaline crash. It comes out of all of us differently. Some guys eat like crazy, some need to fight, some cry, some seek out… Never mind. Anyways, don't beat yourself up. From what Gunny and Peter told us, it was extremely stressful and then to get back and have to deal with your friends being injured and the dead soldiers."

At the mention of Rodney, Jennifer opened her eyes and looked into John's hazel ones. _I have to tell him. He's Rodney's CO on the team and needs to know. _"John, his injury… It's…"

"Someone cut him," John said and she nodded in surprise.

"Elizabeth said when they took her away to get the medical supplies, some guy was walking around with a big knife. The next time she saw him, he had a lot of blood on his arm," John said and shook his head. He closed his eyes obviously imagining the physicist they both came to appreciate and consider a friend being tortured.

"John, he thinks he's a coward for talking," Jennifer said as new tears fell. Tears for the pain her friend endured, but would not shed himself. "The cut was so deep. It almost cut his tendons. If he didn't talk, he would have lost some of his ability to use his hand and do his job."

"Not to mention, they would have tortured Elizabeth and returned to Manara for more of you to torture," John started.

"I told him all that and he even said as much himself, but I know he doesn't believe it." Jennifer had forgotten some of her emotional pain at being rejected and was concerned for Rodney's wellbeing.

"So, you're upset because Rodney's upset?" John asked as he walked over to sit on his sofa, gesturing for Jennifer to join him.

Wiping the tears from her face, she sat on the chair next to John instead. Now that she was here talking about the horrors they faced, she felt even more juvenile for her earlier hysterics. _So what if he doesn't want to kiss you, you might still be able to be friends._

"Jennifer?" John asked, leaning back on the sofa and spreading his arms along the back.

"Sorry, just caught up in thinking," she said looking away from him to take in his room, which she had not been in before.

"About?" He asked again.

"What a fool I am," she said.

"Jennifer, you didn't know Smeadon would betray us. Hell I forced him into taking us in. It's my fault more than yours," John said as he leaned forward and clasped his hands together.

"I'm pissed about that," Jennifer said. "No, I'm foolish for waking you up and dragging you out of bed, so I can cry on your shoulder like you're my big brother or something."

"Well, I always wanted a little sister and sorry I didn't offer you the shoulder," John said. "I have a secret to confess. I might be smooth with most ladies, but give me a crying woman and I have no clue what to do. None at all."

Jennifer laughed at that. "You were pretty pathetic when I showed up. Holding my shoulders to make sure I didn't get any closer. You should have put one hand on my head and pushed me away like a cartoon."

They both laughed at that image. John obviously looking relieved she was not going to demand he hug her or something like that. _But Rodney would have. He always offered his shoulder when I needed it. But not anymore. _Sadness over the fact that he pushed her away returned.

"Okay, sis, what is it? I saw all the humor drain from your face. Tell me or I'll tell Carson and Rodney when they recover from their injuries," John said looking concerned.

"I don't think Rodney will care anymore. I think our friendship is over," Jennifer said and felt pressure building behind her eyes and in her chest again.

"Are you crazy? He's happy to have your friendship," the Major said. "We never discussed what he did to piss you off a while ago. I noticed you haven't been hanging out lately."

"I got tired of never knowing if he was going to be my best friend or act like a stranger. After all we'd been through, I…" Jennifer stopped. _What are you doing? You can't talk to Sheppard about Rodney like this. They're friends and teammates._

"Act like a stranger? When does Rodney ever act that way around you? He worships the ground you walk on. He slept in the infirmary after you were attacked. He almost hit me over what happened with that Wraith and if Gunny hadn't stopped him, I know he would have knocked me on my ass. I've never seen McKay that angry," John said.

Jennifer's brow furrowed and it was her turn to say, "What?"

"Come on. Don't tell me you don't see it. I figured that was part of why you hung around him. He's like a faithful… _pet_, for lack of a better word." John got up and walked closer to Jennifer, looking down into her eyes that widened like saucers.

"Are you saying…" She could not even think it. "Rodney likes me?"

"Likes you! He's crazy about you. Don't pretend you didn't know. No woman is that clueless…" John stopped and his eyes got big.

"Except me. A twenty-six-year-old virgin nerd from Chippewa Falls," Jennifer said waving her hand around. Shock replaced sadness. "But if he's crazy about me why would he stop kissing me?"

"What!" It was John's turn to be shocked. "He kissed you? Really? Like on the lips?"

"Of course on the lips. Where else would he kiss me?" As soon as the words left her lips, her eyes widened and she gasped. "Oh."

John could not help but laugh. "I forgot I'm talking to Sister Jennifer from _The_ _Sound of Music_."

"Stop it." Jennifer felt her face turn bright red.

"I would say if I were finally kissing the woman I'd been dreaming about kissing for months, I'd stop kissing her because I _didn't_ want to stop kissing her."

"I know we're exhausted, but how does that make sense?" Jennifer was confused.

"I'll try to put it a way you can understand," John sat back on the sofa. "The Wraith _will_ find us and now we have the Genii to worry about. Rodney is responsible for coming up with a plan to get more power, raise the shield _without_ power, learn about the Ancients, find ZPMs, read the Ancient database and run a department of arrogant, self-centered, pompous, super-smart people, who are more competitive than anybody I ever played a sport against. I haul his ass around the galaxy on my team almost weekly. He has his own pet projects he's working on, he needs to eat constantly and sleep a lot. When does he have time for a relationship in the middle of all that?"

Jennifer said nothing, but absorbed all that Sheppard said and felt more foolish than ever. "John, I'm a real idiot. I barely have time to eat and sleep sometimes and I don't run a department or participate on a gate team."

"No, you're not an idiot. You're just acting like you're in high school." He smiled and chuckled.

"Well, I was twelve when I started high school, so I obviously didn't date," Jennifer said.

"Not sure now is the best time to live through teenage angst. After all that happened to him, Rodney obviously had a moment of weakness, kissed you and then remembered he can't afford to get romantically involved. He really is one of the most valuable people we have and his drive and ego won't let him fail us. His needs, wants and desires have to be set aside," John said.

"I am so sorry for this, John. You're right. I should be thankful he makes time to be my friend," Jennifer said.

John shook his head laughing. "You've definitely blown me away, Jennifer."

"Huh?" Jennifer mumbled.

"I never imagined, with all the men on this base for you to choose from and, trust me, you could have anyone of them you wanted, you'd fall for McKay," John said and continued laughing.

* * *

The next day, Jennifer steeled herself for the conversation she was going to have to have with her _best_ friend. Rodney was too important to her and everyone else. _Time to swallow your pride, put aside any dreams until a time when we're not going to be killed by space vampires and 1950s-era communist-type commandos._ Walking into Rodney's lab, she was thankful the rest of the department was still having breakfast.

"Rodney," Jennifer called out as she approached his area in the back of the lab. _This is Rodney's domain; he should be comfortable here._

"Jennifer," A breathless voice came from behind her.

Turning, she saw that Rodney had a cup of coffee in his hand. _Must be using his Christmas gift._ "I missed you at breakfast."

"You… you did?" Rodney looked at her with a critical eye, obviously not believing her.

"Rodney, do you have a minute? I don't want to bother you with this, but I need to make sure you are… okay after what happened yesterday morning." Jennifer quickly turned away from him as she steadied herself.

"Um... Well, I…" Rodney stammered avoiding her gaze.

"Rodney, you're my best friend and I don't want the kiss we shared to ruin that friendship." Jennifer forced herself to turn and look into his blue eyes, which were wide with shock.

"Really?" Rodney said with hope in his voice.

"Yes. We've been through a lot together and we were both in pain, so it's perfectly natural for us to reach out to each other." _Wow, that sounded pretty good. I really owe you, John._

"Really?" Rodney repeated with a stronger voice this time.

"Yes, Rodney. You're still my best friend. You were upset and I comforted you. I don't want to get in the habit of providing _that_ type of comfort all the time, but…" Jennifer had to pause as she felt her cheeks heat up because she would _love_ to kiss Rodney all the time. _He's so good at it; I can't imagine how any old girlfriend ever let him go._ Taking a deep breath, she remembered what John said about the good of the mission. "It was really nice and I don't regret being there for you."

"You don't," Rodney said with the same silly look on his face. It was his _happily stunned face_ with eyes wide open, mouth slightly ajar with a slight lift at the corners and his head tilted toward the one speaking to him.

"I don't mind, but I don't want to make it a habit." _The last part is a lie, but he didn't need to know that I don't want to kiss anyone except him. Ever._

"Sure. It won't happen. I promise and I'm really glad we can still be friends," Rodney said smiling and nodding.

"Great, so I'll get you at lunchtime?" Jennifer said. She did want more than friendship from the man standing in front of her and knowing he was interested in her, gave her confidence to be strong. _Good things come to those who wait_, her dad always said.

"Definitely," Rodney said with a grin on his face.

* * *

Jennifer, Rodney and John exited the staff meeting that evening and met Sergeant Richards, who was dressed in black, waiting outside for the Major. Jennifer never remembered seeing him in black before.

"Gunny," John said as he paused in front of the older man.

"Message has been delivered, sir," Richards said. Jennifer had a feeling she was witnessing something she did not _want_ to know about.

"Thank you Richards," John said as the Sergeant nodded and left, never once looking at Jennifer or Rodney.

"What message?" Rodney asked.

"Just telling the Manarans we won't be trading with them anymore," Sheppard said, as he too refused to make eye contact.

**

* * *

A/N: I honestly was not going to get them to this point in their relationship, this early in the series, but I can't resist McKay any more than Jennifer can. He **_**so**_** much needs someone to lean on with all his troubles. I know, not much whump, but the show did plenty to him already.**

**And had to end with Gunny because I'm sure you'd love the Manarans to get some payback. As much as I'd love to write it, you'll have to imagine what Richards did.  
**


	18. The Defiant One

**MGM owns all characters.**

**A/N: Thanks to dwparsnip and scr1. Thanks to everyone who reviews and who put this on their alerts and favorites. I really did not think the AU would still be going.  
**

* * *

Rodney and John were working on Rodney's flying skills as they headed to the Lagrangian Point satellite, so the two astronomers, Doctors Ben Abrams and Brendan Gaul, were being ignored. Ben had never been off world before and was nervous, but the satellite was worth going.

"You won't believe what happened to me last night," Brendan said to Ben.

"What?" Ben replied.

"I was in the observatory and I heard someone outside on the balcony. I went out and _she_ was there," Brendan said. His friend knew exactly whom Brendan was talking about and glanced nervously at Major Sheppard. _Brendan Gaul was as clueless as his boss, Rodney McKay, when it came to knowing about rumors._

"What was she doing up on the tower?" Ben asked raising his eyebrows.

"Using the telescope," Brendan said with surprise. "It's a hobby of hers. She showed me a couple of comets, too."

"Really?" Ben glanced up, but Rodney and John seemed to be deep in conversation about Rodney's flying abilities. The jumper moved off course by the change of stars out the front window, but the inertial dampeners prevented them from feeling it.

Brendan looked queasy until he started talking about his big crush. Ben and some of the other scientists tried to warn him that Jennifer was spoken for and his life might be in danger if he did not stop acting like a drooling teenager_. Everyone knew she was with Sheppard. Isabelle Dumais said Doctor Keller was seen leaving Sheppard's room after the incident on Manara. That's enough proof for me._

"Yes. She's the most amazing, intelligent, beautiful woman I've ever met," Brendan sighed and closed his eyes. "When we get back, I'm going to do _it_."

"Do what?" Ben asked in a low voice as the jumper moved off course again. Abrams shifted in his seat. _No way Sheppard is not listening to this._

"I'm going to ask her out on a date," Brendan said.

"What?" Ben said louder than he wanted to. The jumper moved way off course according to the heads up display Sheppard and McKay were now looking at.

"Doctor Gaul, can I offer you some advice?" The Major said turning to look back at the astronomer.

Ben groaned. _He'll just eject us into space. No one will know. McKay hates all of us, so he won't care._

"Of course, Major. I'm sure a handsome guy like you has lots of pointers," Brendan said oblivious to Sheppard's demeanor.

McKay audibly groaned from the seat in front of his old grad school classmate.

"You could say this is a pointer. You need to think of Jennifer like she's your best friend's sister," John said looking at the scientists. "You do know what that means, right?"

Ben and Brendan looked at each other and Sheppard, obviously confused. Rodney, of all people filled them in.

"No guy _ever_ _dates_ his best friend's sister," Rodney said in the angriest voice Ben heard from the Head of Science.

"I would," Brendan continued.

"Brendan, just give it up. They are trying to tell you don't bother asking Jennifer out," Ben explained rolling his eyes.

"Why not? We're civilians and what we do when we're off duty is not anyone's business," Brendan said.

"Do you know Gunnery Sergeant Richards?" John asked staring back at the astronomer.

"The really tough Marine that's always around her?" Brendan said. "Don't tell me they're dating!"

"No, they're not dating, but he's the one who said Jennifer is off limits to _everyone_, civilians as well." John was speaking slowly like Brendan was an idiot and Ben had to admit his friend was acting like one.

"Well that makes sense for the military. Can't have your soldiers dating anyone. They need to protect all of us without favorites," Gaul continued.

"I'm not sure how to get through to you…" John started until Rodney jumped in.

"I do. If you ask Jennifer out, someone is going to beat you up. Does that work for you?" Rodney yelled.

"Who?" Brendan asked.

"Me if you don't stop acting like an idiot! With all the stuff to explore and see in Atlantis, you can't stop trying to _finally_ score with a girl." Rodney was worked up to his _angry_ ranting level quickly this time.

"Oh please. I had so many more women in grad school than you ever dreamed of," Brendan started.

"Enough!" Sheppard screamed. "We got fifteen hours back after we see this satellite. I don't want to spend it hearing about a couple of geeks and the girls they tried to score with in college. Brendan, I'm going to tell you not to ask Jennifer out. She's sweet and is not _that_ type of girl." John was obviously annoyed

"What!" Gaul said. "I only want to date her, not… well…"

"Jennifer Keller is the type of girl you bring home to Mom and Dad. You pick out curtains and china patterns with her. She's _not_ the type you casually date, so drop it," Sheppard spoke with finality and Gaul finally shut up about his desire to ask Jennifer out.

_Oh, he's lucky Sheppard didn't kill him_. Ben groaned and leaned back for the next hour before they reached the satellite.

* * *

"Oui, I had to spend an hour with Elizabeth and Sergeant Bates this morning. It was humiliating," Isabelle Dumais was saying in her thick French accent as Jennifer sat down to lunch. Peter Grodin, Pamela Simpson, Radek Zelenka and Scott Peterson were seated at the table already.

"What was humiliating?" Jennifer asked her friend.

"Pamela and I had to deal with two of our staff who were caught… How shall I put it…" Isabelle paused.

"In the act," Peterson added laughing.

"In the act of what?" Jennifer asked as she took a drink.

Pamela had been drinking water and started choking, while everyone else laughed.

"You need to stop this innocent girl routine, Jennifer," Isabelle said smiling. "Don't tell me that you and the Major have not gotten in the act?"

Jennifer looked around at her friends and suddenly realized what they were talking about. Annoyance and then anger overcame her. "For the last time, John Sheppard is like a brother to me."

"Stop denying it," Scott said shaking his head. "I saw you leave his quarters last week in the early morning."

"What?" Jennifer said. _Oh crap, he must have seen me after Rodney kissed me and I went to John's room._ Just the thought of kissing Rodney erased the anger she felt at Peterson for his presumption.

Since Rodney kissed her, she could not stop thinking about him. She made a real effort to have a meal with him each day like they did earlier in the expedition, as well as spend some time alone, even if it was just talking about his latest research. It was a strange situation, but Jennifer was loath to ask Rodney if he thought they were dating for fear that he would back away from her again. He did not try to kiss her or touch her in any way since that one time, which caused her to lose sleep this past week.

"A-ha," Pamela Simpson said, "She's not denying it."

"You know what, I refuse to address the issue of my relationship with John Sheppard anymore. No matter what I say, you don't believe me, so forget it." Jennifer glared at her friends.

"So, did Johnson and Wagner get in trouble with Weir?" Radek asked to change the subject from Jennifer's non-relationship with Sheppard to the scientists, who were caught in a compromising position.

"Not really. She's leaving it to Doctor McKay to deal with when he gets back," Pamela said and everyone but Jennifer started laughing.

"McKay needs to punish folks for having sex in a lab? He'll be concerned they damaged the console, not much else," Peterson said as everyone laughed harder.

"So they were caught having sex by security?" Jennifer said, finally getting up to speed on what was going on.

"Yes. I suppose you could see the tape if you wanted," Simpson said as she laughed.

"I can assure you I have no interest…" Jennifer stopped as she heard Chuck speaking in her earwig. "Hold on. Hello, Chuck, what's up?"

"Doctor Keller, could you report to the conference room right away?" The Canadian technician said in a business-like voice, which was not the norm for him.

"Is something wrong?" Jennifer felt a cold knife cut through her chest. Rodney and John were on a mission with Brendan Gaul and Ben Abrams and were due back in about a day, so either something happened on the mission or it has to do with something in the city.

"You'll have to ask Doctor Weir, she asked me to call you," Chuck said. "I need to notify some others."

* * *

Over the next few minutes, Jennifer saw most of her fellow diners at the table receive calls to report to the conference room. Confusion reined as they walked to the transporter because none of them could imagine why _they_ were all called together. Jennifer was in medical and the various departments represented from Science were diverse and seldom collaborated with her.

A fear that something happened to Rodney settled over her and by the time they reached the control room, she was almost hyperventilating. _If Rodney was seriously injured, these are his senior staff and I'm his physician, so Elizabeth would want to tell us._ Clenching her hands so tight that she could feel her nails digging into her palms, she silently climbed the stairs to the conference room.

Gunny Sergeant Richards stood at the top of the stairs, so Jennifer paused to ask him what was going on. The look on his face, which was always stoic and professional, only added to her fear and told her what she needed to know. Since they spent so much time together, she had learned to read the slightest movement of his eyes or mouth and decipher what it means. His quick glance to the conference room meant '_you better get inside quickly' because something serious happened_.

"Thanks, Gunny," Jennifer said and walked quickly toward the room with Radek.

"He didn't say anything," Zelenka said hurrying to keep up with her.

"He said we need to hear what Elizabeth has to say right away," Jennifer said with fear creeping into her voice.

Once the scientists, who accompanied Jennifer, along with Peter Kavanagh and Miko were seated around the table, Elizabeth came in with a sad look on her face.

"Thank you all for coming so quickly. There is some information I want you all to know about regarding your colleagues," Elizabeth said.

Jennifer had a momentary hope this had something to do with the sex, but then, why would she have been called.

"There was an accident on the mission to the Lagrangian Point satellite," Elizabeth continued.

An icy cold feeling like when the Wraith touched her mind months ago went through her. _No! Please don't be Rodney._

"Doctor Keller, you're here because I know you work closely with the research department," Elizabeth said, nodding to Jennifer, and then continued, "I am saddened to announce that Doctor Brendan Gaul and Doctor Ben Abrams were killed."

Gasps of shock and several _No's_ echoed around the room. Jennifer sat in stunned silence as the smiling face of the short astrophysicist came to mind. She had spent an hour with him the day before using the telescope Rodney _gave_ her.

"How the hell did that happen?" Kavanagh screamed. "I thought Sheppard was there to protect them. Was it a jumper accident?" Everyone started talking after that and Elizabeth could not get anyone under control.

Jennifer would have normally screamed at Kavanagh, but she was fighting back tears and losing the battle. _I just saw him. It's like Mace; I spoke to him before I left, too. _Pressure built up in her head and chest. _Rodney!_ "What about Rod… I mean Doctor McKay and Major Sheppard?"

Everyone stopped talking as they looked at her obviously thinking her concern was for Major Sheppard.

"Major Sheppard was slightly injured and Doctor McKay is fine. A second jumper with Lieutenant Ford and Teyla is accompanying them back." Elizabeth looked very sad, but obviously held her emotions in check.

"How?" Isabelle asked in a broken voice.

"They picked up a signal from a downed Wraith ship…" Elizabeth began.

"Great, the civilians die because _they_ needed to investigate a downed ship? Aren't soldiers supposed to die for us? How stupid…" Kavanagh started only to be cut off by an angry Radek Zelenka.

"Two of our colleagues are dead! How dare you start pointing fingers and acting self-righteous? You have never been a member of _this_ team, so why don't you leave. Those of us who lost friends today wish to be together," Radek yelled with tears visible in his eyes.

Jennifer reached out to take his hand as he had jumped out of his seat next to her to scream at Kavanagh. His body was twitching with barely contained rage and she knew exactly how he felt. _Peter Kavanagh didn't care about anyone and only wanted to show how someone else made a bad decision and looked stupid, while he was the smart one. Never have I hated someone like I hate him._

Kavanagh got up and left the room, while the sound of sniffing could be heard from Isabelle and Miko.

"There had been a Wraith on the ship…" Elizabeth continued, but Jennifer had zoned her out. _They had been fed upon._ It was all she needed to hear.

As she thought of the frightened astronomers and how neither wanted to go on the mission a few days ago, her tears leaked out of her eyes. Peter Grodin was seated next to her on the left, with Radek on her right. The British engineer slid an arm around her shoulders and rubbed her left arm with his free hand.

"They will be returning in about two hours," Elizabeth finished as she hung her head in defeat. "We will have a memorial tomorrow most likely, as Doctor McKay is your department head and was a long-time colleague of both men in Area 51 I would like to defer to his timing."

Elizabeth's eyes met Jennifer's and a look of profound sadness crossed over the expedition leader's face. _To lose four people in a week must be hard on her._ _How can she hold it together?_ Trying to stop the tears from flowing, she managed a slight smile as the older woman left the room.

"I just saw him the night before he left," Jennifer choked out as her tears came with more force. "We were in the astronomy lab. I was using a telescope."

"Well, he died happy then," Pamela Simpson said. She was an ex-navy fighter pilot and aeronautical engineer, who was tougher than many of the soldiers. Her green eyes held sympathy as they looked across the table at Jennifer.

"What do you mean?" Jennifer asked.

"He had a huge crush on you. If his last night on Atlantis was spent with you, he died a happy man," Simpson said with the sympathetic smile on her lips.

Imagining their deaths at the hands of the Wraith made it impossible for Jennifer to assume he was happy before he died. _Poor Rodney. His staff, his colleagues killed by a Wraith and he couldn't help them. _Tears flowed harder and a muffled sob made it out of her throat as she thought of his pain. _And he'll never give in and let it out._

Peter Grodin moved so he could pull her into his arms and offer her his shoulder to cry on. Realizing she looked like a fool did not prevent her from sobbing onto his shoulder.

* * *

The band of scientists in the conference room remained together for the two hours before the jumpers returned. When they left, Jennifer was trying to hold her head up. The red eyes and cheeks were impossible to hide as Warrington forced a smile when she walked by. _Great, I look like an idiot. What would I do if something happened to John or Carson or Rodney?_

When the scientists exited the transporter into the jumper bay, Jennifer was shocked to see all the off-duty Marines and many of the Air Force personnel assembled in the jumper bay standing at attention. Gunnery Sergeant Richards turned when she and the other scientists entered; there was profound sadness in his eyes._ The loss of two civilians is obviously affecting him. He feels the soldiers should protect us, not provide an honor guard when we die._

Fresh tears leaked out of Jennifer's eyes as they connected with the big Sergeant. The symbolism of what he arranged, and she was positive _he_ did this, was not lost on her.

The sound of the gate could be heard and the floor began to retract in the center of the bay causing Sergeant Richards to turn away from her and yell, "Attention!"

Jennifer felt Radek slip his arm around her shoulders and squeeze her gently. She reached up to clutch his hand and then swiped at her face with her sleeve.

* * *

Rodney wanted to crawl into his quarters and never leave. He sat in the back of the jumper with Sheppard who had been given painkillers by the physicist against his will for his cracked ribs and gunshot wound. Stackhouse was flying their jumper, while Markham, Teyla and Ford brought the bodies back in the other.

The image of Brendan with a bullet hole in his head would not leave his mind, not to mention the image of Ben Abrams, who was a desiccated corpse when they found him. Both men had been at Area 51 for several years with him and Rodney went to graduate school with Brendan. _I should have made them stay in the jumper. They were barely field certified. I know Richards worked for hours with Gaul to be able to hold a gun steady. And Abrams was terrified of the gate let alone flying through space._

When the hatch opened and he looked out, he just stared. All the military personnel were standing at attention surrounding the jumpers. The medical team to look at him and Sheppard stood immediately behind Richards, with Carson looking anxious. Peter, Elizabeth and his department were lined up in back of Sergeant Richards and those with military background were standing at attention like the soldiers.

His eyes searched the crowd for Jennifer and when he found her, he saw that her face was red and Radek had an arm around her shoulders. The Czech looked like he had been crying as well. A flash of jealousy went through him as it always did if anyone else was touching her. He wanted to be the only one to hold her. After their kiss last week, he never stopped thinking about her. It was as if that one taste of her mouth and few minutes of comfort formed an addiction. The selfish man, who never had time to worry about other people, was totally consumed with Jennifer. He always wondered what she was doing when he was not with her and waited impatiently to tell her about his day or get her opinion on something. The smartest man in two galaxies was clueless as to why he felt this way and tried to ignore the emotions, which were so foreign.

He did not, however, ignore Jennifer any longer. One thing the physicist was certain of was that he did not want to be away from her. His running in fear from the unusual emotions he was feeling was over. _She's a true friend and I need to act like one, too.  
_

"Doctor McKay, do you need a hand?" Rodney heard one of the medical staff ask as he followed John out of the jumper.

"No, I'm fine," he said as he continued to look at Jennifer. She managed a small smile and it made his insides turn over.

"Doctor McKay," Gunny Sergeant Richards said as he stepped up to the physicist.

"Sergeant," Rodney said looking confused.

"Since they were your men, I wish to offer my condolences," the Sergeant said quietly. "They were good men. I never heard any of the soldiers speak ill of them. The same can't be said for all your department, Doctor."

Rodney knew exactly what the older Marine meant. "Thanks. They were."

"Rodney," the soft voice of Jennifer Keller caused him to turn quickly. She stood alone behind Richards. Apparently, Zelenka and the others were discussing what happened with Weir and Sheppard, who refused to get on a stretcher or go to the infirmary.

"I need to…" Rodney wanted to fold her in his arms, breath in her scent and hold her all night long. The last thing he wanted was to have to relive that horror of Brendan Gaul's suicide for Elizabeth and Grodin, but he knew they had to know what happened. _Brendan did it to save John._

"Need to what?" She asked stepping close to him, but not touching.

He noticed she was careful not to touch him like she used to, a brush of her arm against his, a pat on the shoulder. He realized he caused it by giving in and kissing her_. At least she was adult enough to forgive me. _"I need to debrief. I'll let you know when I'm done."

"Okay," she said. "I'm not on duty tonight and I really can't concentrate on anything. I'll probably be in the infirmary reading or something."

"Okay, I'll find you," Rodney said.

* * *

Rodney stepped out of the shower and began to towel off when he heard the door chime. Probably Elizabeth to discuss what happened at the departmental meeting. Quickly grabbing his bathrobe and a pair of sweatpants, he went to the door.

Ensuring he was fully covered in case his boss was on the other side of the door, he opened it. There was a woman waiting for him, but it was not his boss. It was the woman he most _desperately_ wanted to see. _But I don't think my quarters are the best place at the moment._ The sight of Jennifer Keller in a dark-blue, long-sleeved shirt, which accentuated the curves of her upper body and khaki pants, which accentuated the curves of her lower body was too much for him to take in.

"Jennifer, what are you doing here?" He asked a little breathlessly.

"I came looking for you. I didn't think the debriefing would take this long. After I took a shower, I figured I'd see if you were in your room," she said.

After mentioning that she was in a shower, basically down the hall from him, he could not stop the tightening in his loins. _Yup, her hair looks wet in her ponytail._ "Ah, well…Um…As you can see, I… Ah… I just finished… Um… Too. How about some dinner?"

"Don't you want to get dressed first?" Jennifer said with a smile as he stepped out of his door with his bathrobe on.

"Oh, sorry. I'm distracted," he said. _Idiot, why would you say a stupid thing like that?_

"Why don't I grab some food and bring it here? Then you don't have to go anywhere," Jennifer said.

The thought of Jennifer in his quarters, a place she had never been before really terrified him. _No way I'll keep my hands off her._

"How about I meet you…" Rodney was desperately trying to think of any place on Atlantis besides his quarters or her quarters. The poor man's mind wanted her and him together in a bed somewhere badly. _I have to get a grip. She's just a friend. She's just a friend._ He repeated the phrase several more times to control his racing libido.

"Rodney," Jennifer reached out and held onto his upper arm. "I don't think you're well. You should come to the infirmary. I'm sure you're suffering a form of post traumatic stress."

"No, I… I haven't slept in two days. I'll get dressed and we can meet…in the observatory," Rodney said and then regretted it instantly when her eyes filled with tears. "I'm sorry. That's stupid. I don't want to be there and I know you don't want to be there…"

"No, it's fine. It'll be a way to remember them and offer them a last toast or something like that." Jennifer smiled and tried to hold in the tears.

"Are you sure?" Rodney asked trying to determine if she was lying or not. _I gotta get better at reading people. Maybe I would have noticed Gaul's suicidal idea forming if I was._

"I'll be there in half-an-hour with dinner." She turned and left after squeezing his left arm, which sent a warm feeling coursing through his body.

* * *

It was a warm evening on Atlantis, which was fitting if they followed the seasonal calendar of North America, where it would be springtime. _Who can believe it's almost been a year since I met Jennifer._ A feeling of happiness came over him. _Even when I feel this rotten just thinking about her helps._ The fact that he was on his way to see her helped his mood even more.

As Rodney walked out onto the balcony where the telescope was he heard sobbing. _You idiot, what were you thinking of telling her to come to this place. You heard Gaul say they just met here his last night on Atlantis._ Walking quickly to Jennifer, he slid his arms around her waist and she immediately turned and threw her arms around him.

He could feel his light blue oxford shirt getting wet as soon as she pressed her head against his shoulder. The sobbing let up, but she still was sniffling as she said, "I saw… I saw him…the night before…"

"I know and I'm sorry. Thinking of Brendan made me think of this place," he said hoping it sounded like an apology.

"You know I saw him?" She pushed back from his shoulder without removing her arms from his waist and looked up into his eyes. Her brown eyes were watery and blood shot. The moonlight reflected off her wet cheeks and Rodney immediately swiped the tears away.

"Yes. He was bragging about it on the shuttle," Rodney said with a smile. "He really had the _hots_ for you."

Jennifer could not help but laugh at Rodney's choice of words. "I know. I'm usually clueless about men's interest, but he was _very_ obvious. I always tried to be nice to him, but not… Well, I…"

"Jennifer, you can't feel bad because you didn't feel that way about him. He was used to it. Trust me, us geeky scientists never have a woman like you look in our direction, let alone smile, share a meal and talk to us for more than an hour. You tried to be a friend and I know he was a happier man because of that," Rodney could not believe what he was saying. _I actually sound insightful and compassionate. How does she do that to me?_

"Don't sell yourself short. Plenty of women would love to spend time with you," Jennifer said and her eyes suddenly looked down at his chest.

Rodney's eyebrows rose up his forehead. _What does she mean by that?_

"Come on," he said putting his hands on her shoulders. "Let's get some food. I haven't eaten in hours."

"And then you need to get some sleep," she said.

* * *

They sat in near silence eating sandwiches and fruit. The moon went in and out of clouds, so Rodney turned on a light in the lab. The astrophysicist returned and began to feel the shock of what happened earlier in the day wash over him. Looking at his hands, he discovered they were trembling. His breathing increased and he felt dizzy.

"Uh… Jennifer?" He said with a bit of panic in his voice.

"Rodney?" She said and walked over to him. "What is it?"

"I don't know," he said with fear creeping into his voice. "I feel dizzy and… and my hands." He held them up for her to see them shaking.

"Rodney McKay! I told you to come to the infirmary earlier. I knew you were in shock," she scolded as she took his hands in hers. "Let's go sit on the bench. Here, I'll help you."

Jennifer helped him over to the bench along the wall and sat close to him, taking his hands between hers and pulling them to her chest. _Does she realize she's holding my hands against her breasts? _With the softness of her body pressing against his hands, remembering Brendan's death was not so hard on him. Jennifer's presence and touch really did make him feel better. Her thumbs were rubbing over his skin sending a different type of tremor through his body.

"Rodney, take some deep breaths," she said, looking at him with concern in her tawny eyes. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Brendan didn't die from the Wraith feeding," Rodney said very aware that this topic might upset Jennifer because of her own attack.

"You mean it only _partially_ fed on him?" Shock registered on her face.

Rodney only nodded, as he could not find the words. If it had to do with her sitting very close to him and holding his hands or the pain of imagining what Ben and Brendan went through, he was not sure.

"I couldn't talk to Carson or Doctor Biro, who was going to perform the autopsy," Jennifer said with her voice breaking. "So I don't know the cause of death."

"Gun shot to the head," Rodney said before he could stop himself. His brain seemed to feed words to his mouth without him being able to filter them around Jennifer. It was something he knew he needed to get a handle on before it got him into trouble.

"What!" Jennifer's hands tightened their hold on his.

"He killed himself," Rodney said as some of the pain in his chest lessened with the words. "We could hear Sheppard on the radio. We knew he was in trouble. Brendan killed himself so I could go and help John."

"What!" Jennifer repeated herself.

The physicist stared off into space as he spoke, but now looked back at Jennifer. She was crying again, so he quickly pulled her into his arms to hold her tight as her arms slid around his waist. He inhaled deeply and was rewarded with the familiar flowery scent that he had grown to love. Holding her in his arms gave him such a sense of peace that he knew it would be hard to go to their separate quarters later.

Rodney could not think of anything more to say, so he just held her, enjoying the soft feel of her body as he rubbed his hands up and down her back. His head was resting against her silky hair, which was still damp from her shower. As he gave in to the desire to imagine Jennifer's body under a cascade of water, he felt his eyelids sliding down. _I'll rest a minute and then I need to let her go._

* * *

Jennifer's back was cold, but her chest and face were warm. She felt stiffness in her arms as she realized they were wrapped around something that was soft and hard at the same time. As her consciousness returned, she realized she had fallen asleep sitting up and that she was leaning against someone, whose heartbeat and breathing could be heard and felt along with a slight snoring.

Shifting, she realized she was sitting on someone's lap. The last time she sat on someone's lap was her dad when she was fiver or six. _Where am I?_ Apparently, she fell asleep and did not dream because her brain was foggy as it tried to figure out what had happened. The physician had slept poorly for the last week because she either woke up from a nightmare of the Wraith or she woke up with an achy body from dreaming of Rodney's kiss, so waking up with no recollection was odd.

The light from the moon illuminated the face of Rodney McKay for Jennifer to see when she raised her head to look around. _I fell asleep on Rodney's lap?_

Rodney must have felt her movement because his arms tightened around her midsection, with one hand sliding up her back. She could not move because his other hand had slid up her ribcage and his thumb lightly brushed the underside of her breast sending a shiver down her spine. _What's going on?_

"Mmm, Jennifer," Rodney mumbled and opened his eyes. "Jennifer!"

Rodney almost threw her off his lap. Jennifer was forced to grab his shoulders to keep from falling on her backside when he jumped off the bench they were sleeping on.

"Hey," she yelled as she found herself pressed fully against his body as she hung on to keep upright.

"What are you doing?" He asked as he staggered back, catching his legs on the bench and sitting down again. Since Jennifer was clinging to him, she fell on him with her chest pressed against his. Her legs ended up straddling one of his as their combined heavy breathing echoed around the balcony.

"I was sleeping until you practically threw me on the deck," Jennifer snapped. She was very aware of a strange _pressure_ in her lower abdomen. It was the same feelings that woke her in the middle of the night after dreaming about Rodney's kiss.

"What were you doing sleeping on my lap?"

"I was going to ask a similar thing," Jennifer shot back, realizing that she still sat with his thigh between her legs and her arms wrapped around his shoulders. Feeling a wave of warmth flood up her neck to her cheeks, she pushed back from him only to be captured by his arms around her waist.

"I guess... We… Um… Must have fallen asleep," Rodney said with little focus on the words he was speaking. His eyes were staring at her lips, which were only a few inches from his.

Jennifer wanted to kiss him and had a feeling he wanted to kiss her, too. _Should I kiss him?_ Deciding he needed a kiss after all he had been through in the last couple of days, she leaned the few inches between them to press her lips to his, when the voices of Peter Grodin and Radek Zelenka sounded from inside the lab.

The physician jumped off Rodney's lap as he shoved her away and stood quickly. He avoided looking at her as he quickly headed inside to see what they wanted. Jennifer sat on the bench as it became clear Rodney was trying to force them out of the lab.

Glancing at her watch, she noticed it was 1:00am and there was no reason for her and Rodney to be alone on a balcony at that time of night that would be believed by anyone. _No need to fuel the rumor mill. _Listening closely, she heard Rodney tell the other scientists that he would join them in the mess hall in a little while.

With her heart skipping a beat, as Rodney's footsteps got closer to the balcony, she was not sure what was going to happen.

"I told them I'd meet them in a few minutes," Rodney said as he rounded the corner.

Jennifer stood up and said, "I need to get some rest. I really don't remember falling asleep."

"Me either," Rodney said, unable to look at her or keep his hands from fidgeting. "You should get some rest. I'll go sit with them. Should check on Sheppard as well. So, I'll… Um… I'll see you at breakfast?"

"Sure," Jennifer said with a forced smile as Rodney motioned for her to leave in front of him. Feeling a sudden surge of courage that she never knew she possessed, she stopped in the doorway.

"Jennifer, what's wrong?" Rodney asked.

The young woman turned, stepped up to him, reached up to frame his face with her hands, tilted his head down a few inches and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. She pulled back so quickly; he could not respond nor touch her. "Good night Rodney."

She smiled as she left the stunned man standing in the doorway. _If he's willing, I'm not passing up a kiss._

**

* * *

A/N: This was supposed to be a short tag. Now look what happened. I hope you like it.**


	19. Hot Zone Part 1

**MGM owns all characters except OCs.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and dwparsnip and scr1 for beta work.**

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, but I've been writing a real fiction on fictionpress, which took me away from Atlantis. Getting back with this multi-chapter episode. Trying to keep them in manageable pieces.  
**

* * *

Rodney stopped by the infirmary to say good-bye to Jennifer before heading out to examine parts of Atlantis for structural damage caused by the storm three weeks ago. Doctors Dumais, Hays, Peterson and Zelenka along with some Marine escorts and most of the engineering department were accompanying him. Sheppard ordered Ford to go, too, and keep Rodney out of trouble.

Today was Rodney McKay's thirty-seventh birthday and Jennifer did something special for all her friends on his or her birthday, so far, and Rodney was hoping for something as well. For Carson and John, who share a birthday, she personally baked a cake and for Radek she helped him perfect the fermentation of his moonshine, which had been making a lot of people sick. No one ever did anything for Rodney's birthday in the past and his own parents often forgot it, so he hoped he could at least spend the evening alone with Jennifer._ That would make it the best birthday I ever had._

The physicist was still surprised that Jennifer had been so understanding of his kissing her after the Genii invasion and his need to be with her after Brendan and Ben died. It left him a little concerned, however, that Jennifer _might_ be just as _nice_ to the others when they were upset, particularly John Sheppard.

Since they got back after their last failed mission, the Major had become aloof and distant. Rodney knew it was because his CO felt guilty over leaving Abrams and Gaul alone while the two of them investigated the ship. _A soldier should never bring back dead civilians_, he overheard John say to Elizabeth recently. The physicist could not remove his own guilt, but as Jennifer said, _Brendan took his own life_. _He was alive and we might have been able to help him if he didn't give up._ Sheppard only seemed to want to spend time with Teyla or Jennifer, which made Rodney concerned about his teammate's intentions with Jennifer once again. _I still can't believe Jennifer willingly spends time with me. She's just so nice and beautiful and perfect and not like anyone else I've ever…_

"Good morning, Doctor McKay," the voice of Sergeant Richards pulled him out of his musings.

"Sergeant. You're up early," Rodney said taking in the fact that the soldier was not wearing his usual Tac vest with P90 clipped on it. He looked strange clad in a military camouflage jacket and hat with only a single side arm.

"Going to the mainland with Doctor Keller," he said with a nod.

Richards seems to know everything that went on and obviously knew he and Jennifer were spending time together. Rodney was very careful to keep that fact as hidden as possible. _No one needs to know my personal business, but you can't hide from Richards._ Swallowing, he returned the nod and muttered, "I… I didn't know she was going anywhere." Disappointment was obvious in his voice.

"Adira is finally having her baby. Kanaan called early this morning, so Doctor Keller, Stackhouse and I are heading over. I was supposed to go hunting with Kanaan and Halling, but that won't happen now," Richards explained in more words than McKay ever heard from the man before.

"Oh, sorry to hear that." Rodney always felt odd talking to Richards. The man was such a professional soldier that McKay was certain he thought of the physicist as cowardly. He was also not certain of Richards' relationship with Jennifer. _The big Marine was always around her and John said he told everyone to keep their hands off her._ _What do you think he'd do to you if he found out you'd kissed her?_

"I don't get much R&R, so I need to enjoy whatever I get. Figure I can get away and still keep an eye on Doctor Keller," he said with a slight smile.

_I don't think I've seen Richards smile. Wow, I'm sort of having a normal conversation with him._ "I don't think I've ever seen you off duty."

"We all need relaxation from time to time," Richards said.

"Rodney!" Jennifer's voice cut into their conversation and Rodney smiled while turning toward her.

"Good morning, I…" Rodney started only to have Jennifer, who was clad in a jacket and carrying a big bag, interrupt him.

"I need to see you for a minute." Jennifer said as Richards quickly walked over and took the bag from her.

"I'll take that, Doctor," he said smiling at her.

"Thanks, Gunny," Jennifer said with a bright smile.

Rodney felt his stomach drop. _Oh no! Not Richards, too! Is there a man on this base who isn't after her?_ "Sure and… Uh, I would've helped with that. You only needed to call," Rodney said as he saw Richards take her bag and swing it over his shoulder with ease.

"That's fine. I guess Gunny told you I need to go to the mainland," she said as they walked to her office where she motioned him inside.

After closing the door, she went into her desk. "I don't know if I'll be back. Babies never do what you expect of them and this one is premature, so that's even worse."

"Uh-huh," Rodney mumbled, knowing nothing about deliveries except women scream, men faint and babies cry.

"The Athosians still don't trust many of us and Adira and Kanaan are some of the most distrustful. They only want me to come. I've delivered a couple of babies and would love some help, but I'll respect their wishes," Jennifer said as she finished getting something from a drawer. "Now, close your eyes."

"What?" Rodney asked confused.

"Close your eyes, please?" Jennifer asked with a sweet smile and raised eyebrows. The way she cocked her head, she looked devious.

"Okay, but you better not have some kind of shot for me or I'll torture you," Rodney said smiling as he did what she asked.

The sound of rustling cloth could be heard and for a second, Rodney thought she was removing clothing. Gulping for air, he felt his body react to the image of Jennifer in her t-shirt, which he swore was getting too tight for her, or of her with no t-shirt at all.

"You can open them now," she said.

Rodney looked down to see her standing close to him holding a box wrapped with Athosian cloth and tied with a piece of ribbon.

"Happy birthday, Rodney," Jennifer said with her mega-watt smile aimed at him. "I wanted to give this to you over a dinner that I was going to make, but… Well... duty first."

"Jennifer, you remembered." Rodney was truly surprised she did. He had hoped she would, but was not certain. A grin unlike any he had in a long time spread over his face as he took the gift.

"Of course," she said after releasing the gift. "It's not much. Not like a comet by any means, but… I think you'll like it."

"I'd like anything you gave me," he said suddenly blushing furiously. _Why would you say something like that? _

"That's sweet, but I'm sure a shot or a cold would not be on that list," she said laughing.

"Depends on how you gave me the cold," Rodney said without thinking as he pulled open the ribbon. Swallowing, he took a glance at Jennifer and saw she was looking away and blushing a bright pink. The sight made the physicist's heart flutter. Looking back at the box in front of him, he opened the cloth wrapping and found a white box.

"Open it," she prompted as he shook it to hear something moving inside. "Stop shaking it and open it."

"I'm enjoying the surprise. No one has remembered my birthday in over a decade at least," Rodney said smiling broadly, as he pulled the lid off to reveal a bag of coffee, a bag of M&Ms and a bag of Hershey's kisses.

"I know. Pretty lame gifts, but…" Jennifer started.

"Jennifer, how did you get all this coffee and candy here? We only had one personal item and I admit I brought a lot of food in my equipment boxes, but you only got to the base the day before we left, so you had no time to stuff supply boxes." Rodney was in awe of her never-ending supply of food he desperately _needed_ to survive.

"My dad was in the military for a long time, so he knew what I needed to survive and make lots of friends," Jennifer said laughing.

"You're giving candy and coffee to others?" Rodney asked and knew his voice was laced with anger.

"No, Rodney. Only you and Carson, but he's not a coffee drinker so I have tea for him," she said.

"Sorry. I just don't want to share my… _caffeine_," he added trying to recover from his brief burst of jealousy.

"I know," she said smiling.

"Jennifer," Rodney said with a bit of a lump in his throat. "These are the best gifts."

"Really? Coffee and chocolate?" Jennifer asked obviously not believing him.

"Yes and…" Rodney paused as he set the box on her desk and reached out to touch her shoulders, "…the _friendship_ of the woman who gave them to me."

Jennifer smiled and slid her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "Only the best for my best friend."

_Best friend._ He felt saddened by that phrase. _What do you want besides friendship? _He was not really sure of the answer."I really am stunned that someone remembered."

"I'd _never_ forget," Jennifer said drawing back and smiling at him.

_This is getting too easy_. Rodney was unable to resist the woman in his arms, so he leaned down to press a kiss to her lips. Before he could deepen it or she could respond, he heard her name being called by Richards outside the door.

"Doctor Keller," Richards said. "Control just called and we need to go early, Adira's contractions are increasing rapidly. I'm sorry, but we need to go _now_."

"Sure, Gunny," Jennifer yelled, jumping back. "Sorry, Rodney."

"No, I'm…Uh… I'm sorry," he stammered. _Is Richards going to kill me? He had to think we were doing something we shouldn't have been in here._

"I'll see you as soon as I get back," she said opening the door, "and have fun exploring the city."

Rodney stepped out and looked at Richards to see the man smiling. "Happy birthday, Doctor McKay."

"Uh… Thanks," he muttered as Jennifer and Richards headed out of the infirmary. An overjoyed Rodney McKay headed off to find his team. _I just might go easy on them today._

* * *

Jennifer was exhausted by the time little Lorianna entered the world, ten hours after the physician arrived on the mainland. Delivering a baby was just as tiring on the physician as the mother. Marta and Charin helped a great deal, but Jennifer knew it was in her hands to ensure the baby was delivered safely. Once she exited the hut to announce the birth, Kanaan, Halling and many others started dancing around and singing an Ancient song about new life and hope. Getting caught up in the moment, she found herself dancing with the Athosians.

Richards was smiling at her and watching as Kanaan spun her around until she fell down laughing hysterically. Sitting on the ground for a moment to catch her breath, Jennifer let her head fall onto her bent knees and inhaled deeply the smells of the cook fires, trees and earthy smells of the encampment. Somehow the Athosian's simple ways reminded Jennifer of growing up around farms in Wisconsin more than anything. They were a tight-knit community out of necessity because of the cullings and being uprooted often, but they welcomed Jennifer with open arms. _I've never felt more at home except when I'm with Rodney._

As her thoughts drifted to the birthday boy, she got a silly grin on her face. Lifting her head to look around, she realized it was late afternoon as the sun was sinking in the sky._ Time to go back and finish Rodney's birthday surprise._ Jennifer was going to cook him a meal and, hopefully, hang around in her quarters watching a movie. Her grin broadened as she thought about what else they might do while alone on the couch. Catching Gunny's eye, she felt a blush filling her cheeks. _He knows what Rodney and I were doing in my office, I just know it. I feel like a teenager hiding from her father._

Richards clicked his ear radio and Jennifer saw his relaxed features switch into his _'on duty'_ mode. Jumping quickly to her feet with all happiness leaving her body to be replaced by fear, she ran to him on the outskirts of the celebration.

"Gunny?" She asked as she approached him.

"Understood, Stack. Doctor Keller and I will return to the jumper immediately," Richards said in his professional voice. His eyes connected with hers and he said, "There is a situation on Atlantis. I don't have many details other than Sergeant Campbell notified us to remain on the mainland. He mentioned something about a quarantine lock-down of the city."

"Quarantine!" Jennifer's heart jumped into her throat. "Oh God, I need to get back, Gunny. Carson's gonna to need me."

The young woman turned and ran at full speed back down the path to the jumper parked about a half a mile away. Richards yelled to Halling that they had to go to the jumper as he ran off in pursuit.

* * *

Once in the jumper, Jennifer started screaming into the radio. "Chuck, you gotta patch me into Carson and Elizabeth. I can't stay here. I got no data, nothing. I can't help."

"Doctor Keller," Richards' barked at Jennifer in a harsher tone that he ever used with her before.

"Gunny, I can help. I need to get back," she said angrily. "Chuck's giving me the run around. He won't say anything and won't get Weir, Sheppard, Rodney or anyone else on the radio."

"Calm down and let me see what I can find out," the Sergeant said placing a hand on her shoulder to push her gently but firmly down into the co-pilot's seat.

"Sergeant Campbell?" Richards said. Stackhouse had put the radio on speaker in the jumper.

"I'm sorry, Gunnery Sergeant Richards, but things are pretty chaotic around here. We need you to sit tight," Chuck replied.

"Dammit, Chuck, I am a senior member of the medical team. I can't be stranded on the mainland during an outbreak. Let me talk to someone in medical…" Jennifer shouted.

"Jennifer," Elizabeth's voice broke in. "I understand your desire to help, but right now, keeping you uninfected is the best course of action. We need to deal with a variety of issues in addition to the outbreak, so please allow us to work. Doctor Beckett and most of medical are in hazmat suits dealing with the infection and don't have time to brief you."

"Fine, but at least have Radek or Rodney look into boosting the emitters for communications or data transfers to the mainland," Jennifer begged. She was getting desperate to be able to do something. Sitting by once again like on Hoff or on Manara while those she cared about were in danger was enough to drive her out of her mind.

There was silence for longer than necessary. "Doctor Weir?" Richards called out.

"Did we lose communications, Stackhouse?" Jennifer asked.

"No, we're still connected," he replied.

"Doctor Keller, I will have Sergeant Campbell see what he can do. Weir out," Elizabeth said.

Chuck's voice came over the radio. "Doctor Weir wanted me to let you know that Doctors McKay, Zelenka, …" Jennifer lost track of the litany of names of soldiers and scientists that Chuck listed as the infected was rattled off. _Hays. Peterson. Dumais. Lieutenant Ford. Sergeant Warrington. Sergeant Carter._

Tears streaked down her face and she could not suppress a sob at the thought of so many of her friends in danger. "It must have happened in the unexplored region of the city."

"There are more buildings than lower Manhattan around here. There could be anything out there," Stackhouse said in reply to Jennifer's thought.

"Chuck, what do you know about the infection?" Jennifer asked.

"If you give me a minute, I can patch you into the radio channel from Carson out on the East pier," Chuck said.

"Outstanding job, Sergeant," Richards said from his post behind Jennifer's seat, as if his presence alone could comfort her.

"Give me a minute," Chuck said and they were in silence for a few seconds.

Richards stepped into the back of the jumper and came forward with Jennifer's bag. "Halling had a someone run your medical bag to me. He figured you needed it back on Atlantis. Here's your laptop, Doctor."

"Thank you, Gunny," Jennifer said snatching her computer from him. Even though she could not tap into the network from this far out, she could pull up her medical information and start a spreadsheet of data on the infection.

"Doctor Keller, I'm patching you into Doctor Biro," Chuck said.

"Thank you, Chuck!" Jennifer said. "Elaine, can you hear me?"

"Doctor Keller, you picked a helluva day to go on a trip," she said in her usual fast-talking manner.

"Babies never come at the right time, Elaine. What do you have?" Jennifer asked holding her breath. _Some people obviously died if Elaine, the pathologist, was involved._

"I was just going to report, so hold on and you can hear first hand," the older woman said. "Doctor Beckett, I have the preliminary autopsy results from the first two victims, sir."

"Anything of interest?" Carson's voice came on and Jennifer let out a breath.

"They both died of a ruptured saccular brain aneurysm, which, in itself, isn't all that remarkable. I mean, sure, the chances of two people standing next to each other and dying of it is statistically improbable, yes, but it's not the smoking gun we were hoping for, cause I know you said..."

"Get to the good part, Doctor Biro," Carson interrupted her.

Jennifer knew Elaine Biro could talk for days, but she was an excellent pathologist. Since she wanted as much information as she could get, she did not let Carson know she was listening by interrupting them. _Saccular aneurysm in two people?_

"Yeah, sorry, sir. What is truly interesting is that both ruptures happened in exactly the same place, right above the visual cortex," Elaine added.

"Who were the two victims?" Jennifer finally asked because it could be somehow related.

"Jennifer!" Rodney and Carson's voices said in surprise.

"Where are you?" Rodney asked with obvious concern in his voice.

"I'm in a jumper on the mainland. Elizabeth won't let us return," Jennifer said with anger in her voice.

"And a good place to be," Rodney said.

"I'm dead in the water out here. I got no access to anything. I can't help you guys." Jennifer admitted not caring that everyone could hear her anger.

"Right now, you know what we do, love," Carson said.

"So who were victims one and two? Do we know when they were exposed? What the incubation period is?" Jennifer shot off her litany of questions.

"Doctors Wagner and Johnson," Carson said.

"Carson, they were…" Jennifer did not know how to say this _delicately_. "They were involved. You know, as in they probably shared bodily fluids in some fashion." Jennifer felt her face flame as Stackhouse turned red as well and looked at the floor.

"I'm sure that's what they were doing by the looks of this place," Rodney said with obvious disgust in his voice. "However, I don't think they gave it to each other, they broke something open. This lab was isolated from the rest of the city and several containers were smashed. We've been breaking into the computer system in the lab and I've not read all the entries, it's incredibly long, but found something that looks like our guy. Six hour hibernation, reoccurring visions, and best of all, so I've left it 'til last, brain hemorrhage, or aneurysms."

"The visions would be consistent with pressure build up like that on your visual cortex," Jennifer said trying to absorb all the information and transcribe it onto her laptop. Her fingers moved almost as fast as Rodney's.

"Maybe there's something in here about how to..." Rodney's voice trailed off and he screamed. "Sorry."

"Rodney!" Jennifer screamed. "What's going on!" Panic gripped the young woman and she looked with wide-eyes at Richards standing next to her. He put a hand on her shoulder and she clutched at it with both of hers.

"I've been seeing things," Rodney said reluctantly.

"Since when?" Carson asked.

"About an hour. First you think it's just your eyes playing tricks on you but eventually..." Rodney was cut off as Brian Hays spoke up.

"…they get worse," Hays said.

"You too?" Rodney said.

Jennifer could not stop the panic from gripping her. She was having difficulty breathing and her body was trembling. _Rodney's infected. Rodney's seeing visions. Rodney's going to… No!_

"They come right at you," Doctor Hays said.

"It's like a ghost," Rodney said with his voice softening.

"I've been going over the survey schedule. Johnson and Wagner started off on their own, but then crossed paths with Dumais an hour later," Radek chimed in.

"Isabelle?" Jennifer said as fresh tears flowed out of her eyes. The French engineer was one of Jennifer's first friends in Antarctica. Since so many people she cared about were in danger, her brain could no longer process it all and she felt numb.

"I'm sorry, Jennifer, but she…" Radek started, but his voice broke.

"Dumais died almost exactly an hour after Johnson and Wagner. Who did they meet up with next?" Carson broke in because time was of the essence.

Jennifer knew he was trying to sort this out and was not as heartless as he sounded. The young physician lost all warmth in her body as she waited, knowing something dreadful was going to be revealed.

"My greater concern is who Dumais met up with next," Radek said quietly.

"Dumais? Who'd she run into?" Carson asked.

Jennifer's heart knew the answer. As the sound of blood pounding through her ears almost drown out the conversation on the radio a voice that Jennifer had come to cherish above all others spoke.

"Me. She ran into Hays ... and me. We're next," Rodney said with defeat in his voice.

Jennifer felt herself falling forward in the jumper seat with the strong arms of Dwayne Richards wrapping around her. As her vision blurred, she felt herself being laid on the floor of the jumper.

TBC

* * *

**A/N: I know a cliffhanger, but you do know what happens in the episode so don't fear for our hero :-) Also, Richards just wanted to talk to Rodney. Never gave their relationship much thought, but the characters obviously did. I'm not insane, they really do take over the story.  
**


	20. Hot Zone Part 2

**MGM owns all characters except OCs. Some dialogue taken from Gateworld.**

**Thanks as all for the reviews, which keep this story going. Thanks scr1 and Icemenace for beta.  
**

* * *

Jennifer heard Richards speaking loudly by her ear and heard Stackhouse say he had shut off communications to Atlantis. Her vision was very blurry and her heart was racing, but she screamed and pushed herself off the deck only to get light-headed by the sudden rush of blood. "No!"

"Jennifer!" Richards growled. "You have to relax. You cannot help anyone if you lose control. I know this is a lot to take in, but I know you can help them, even from here. Take some deep breaths."

Inhaling deeply and trying to think about nothing, she felt her heart slowing from it's earlier pounding. _Gunny's right, I can't help them by freaking out. This has never happened to me before._ "I'm fine. Please put the radio back on," Jennifer asked Stackhouse. She knew they shut it off to save her the embarrassment of having to report that she passed out.

Once they got the communications back on, Jennifer heard Rodney grumbling to Carson, "Is this really necessary? I am about to die of a brain aneurysm, how does being attached to a heart monitor help?"

"If you die like the others, we'll have a better idea of how," Carson could be heard saying.

Jennifer knew it was a bad joke, but she was in no mood. "Carson, that's awful. Don't ever say that again!"

"Jennifer, love, you're back. We lost you for a few minutes," Carson said.

"Yes, I know. This would be much better if I could at least be close enough to get data on my laptop," Jennifer said.

"Jennifer, trust me, you don't want to be around here," Rodney said.

"Chuck?" Jennifer suddenly had an idea.

"Go ahead Doc," the Canadian gate technician replied.

"Can you patch me in to Doctor Weir?" Jennifer asked.

"Sure, if she's not too busy," Chuck replied.

Gunny motioned for Stackhouse to cut communications while they waited for Chuck to find Elizabeth. "Doctor Keller, you are an excellent doctor."

Jennifer had no idea where Richards was going with this or why he was looking at her so intently with his grey eyes, so she cocked her eyebrows and waited for him to explain himself.

The big Marine put a hand on her shoulder and leaned close to her. "I know what Doctor McKay means to you and I can only guess how upsetting this must be, but you need to remain calm and work the problem."

"What he means… I… He's a friend, like the others," Jennifer said looking away from Richards to see Stackhouse giving her a knowing look.

"Jennifer, Warry and I saw you get jealous of McKay a while back, so I know too." Tommy looked sheepishly at the floor.

"I…" Jennifer did not know what to say. A part of her felt relief that these men knew what she was going through, but another part was horrified that she was so obvious with her feelings for Rodney. _If Rodney figures it out, he'll push me away again because he won't want to be involved with a colleague. If he lives that long. _At that thought, Jennifer felt tears in her eyes once again. "I know Gunny and I'm sorry I passed out. It was just…"

"…Too much. I know," Richards said with a knowing nod of his head.

"Doctor Keller," Elizabeth's voice came over the radio.

"Doctor Weir, I have a compromise for you," she said trying to sound professional. _Speak normally. Take deep breaths._ Her eyes connected with Richards and then Stackhouse and their calm gazes helped her focus.

"I'm listening," Elizabeth responded.

"What if we fly back and land out on the East Pier or some other remote spot? We will not exit the jumper and if we had to, there are containment suits in here." Jennifer held her breath as silence filled the radio.

"Rodney, are you still there?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes," his voice was devoid of emotions and Jennifer could not tell what he thought of the idea.

"Could a jumper remain free from an infectious agent?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes, they have scrubbers and internal air supplies," Rodney said. "Jennifer would be able to get the best computer signal on the north pier."

A smile spread over Jennifer's face. _Please believe him, please believe him._

"Okay, but Sergeant Richards…" Weir said.

"Yes, ma'am," Richards said.

"I want you to ensure that no one leaves the jumper without my approval. Is that understood?" Elizabeth said.

"Yes, ma'am," Gunny replied.

"Very well. You may return to Atlantis," Elizabeth said.

"Thank you!" Jennifer jumped up and hugged Richards. "Stack, let's go!"

"Jennifer?" Carson asked. "I'm sure you want to know what we're dealing with."

"Yes, please tell me what's going on," Jennifer said as she set

"Elaine submitted some photos of the area of the aneurysm to us. The position of the aneurysm is above the visual cortex and swelling in that area before the breakage could absolutely account for the hallucinations," Carson said.

"Rodney, what kind of visions did you have?" Jennifer asked.

"They look like ghosts or spirits," Rodney explained.

"Mine too, Jennifer," Hays said.

"Those types of visions are not indicative of brain swelling on the visual cortex. You should see washes of color, like when you suffer from a migraine, not a true visual representations of something," Jennifer explained.

"Looks like a small storm in front of us, Doc," Stackhouse said. "I'll need to go up and over."

"Fine," Richards said taking a seat behind Jennifer.

"But Jennifer, wouldn't it depend on the person?" Carson asked.

"That's my point, Carson. Their visions are similar. If they're the result of arterial swelling, the visions would be more random," Jennifer explained. Staring at a brain map, which she pulled up on her laptop, she zoomed in on that region of the brain.

"Well, the things we're seeing are pretty damn identical!" Rodney interjected obviously annoyed with Carson. "Like Jennifer said."

The beeping of a heart monitor began to sound in the background causing Jennifer to jump. The jumper was beginning to ascend over the storm front that was ahead of them. "Carson, what's going on?"

"No! Noooo!" Hays started screaming.

"Rodney!" Jennifer said with her heart beginning to race. The familiar ringing was starting in her ears. _Deep breathes. Slow down._

"Hey! It's not real, remember? It's not real!" Rodney was saying trying to calm his engineer.

"No! No! They're coming right at us! Can't you see them?!" Brian Hays could be heard screaming.

"Stop struggling, lad," Carson said.

"What's happening!" Jennifer screamed, as she looked about wildly inside the jumper. The view out the window was very dark as the jumper rose through the outer bands of the storm.

"Do something!" Rodney was screaming.

"There's nothing to do!" Beckett cried. "Start CPR."

Jennifer knew Hays was dying. Wanting to break down and cry, she sucked in a deep breath as she felt Richards' hand on her shoulder. Looking up she saw a grim look on his face.

"One, two, three, four, five. One, two, three, four, five." Could be heard over the radio. Jennifer choked back a sob and closed her eyes.

"Stop! It's not his heart. Just..." Rodney's voice broke as he spoke. "…Stop."

Silence filled the radio for a few minutes. A faint sound of a woman crying was heard and Jennifer felt tears slide down her cheeks. "You need to go faster Stackhouse."

"I need to clear the storm clouds," he said.

"Just go straight through. I need to get their faster," Jennifer said.

"How are you feeling?" Ford's voice spoke.

"Jennifer," Rodney's voice sounded strained and unlike any she heard from him.

"I'm here, Rodney. We're flying straight through the storm. I'll be there…"

Rodney cut her off. "I'm ... I'm ... Listen, I have a sister. We're not close. Her name is Jeannie. Jeannie Mc… Well, she got married. I don't know his name."

"Rodney, don't talk like that," Jennifer said as the tears fell faster. _He is **not** going to die. He can't die. Please don't let him die._

"Jennifer, she's the only family I really have, so someone should tell her what happened. And, uh, make it sound good, okay? Tell her I ... I died saving someone... kids! I died saving kids, a bunch of them. Zelenka... I've got some theories on looping the power on the Gate to charge a dummy ZedPM. It probably won't work; but, but you should have someone look at it 'cause it might lead somewhere else." Rodney was speaking fast.

Jennifer was sobbing silently because she knew there was nothing she could do. _He ran into Isabelle the same time as Hays._ The pain in her chest felt like her heart was being constricted. Getting enough oxygen seemed almost impossible as she gulped for air.

"We'll look at it together," Radek said.

"Rodney," Jennifer said with a broken voice. "Please stop…"

"Look, you seriously have to stop interrupting my last thoughts. I mean, this is important stuff you need to hear. Now… if you're here for more than a year, I've left some notes on how to roll blackouts to effectively maintain your power requirements and-and, oh, tell everyone that I was, I was inches away from a Theory of Unification but uh, uh, the notes, they were lost when I died saving the..." Rodney said only to be cut off.

Jennifer looked at Stackhouse and screamed "What happened to the radio!"

"I think we lost it because of the storm," he said with desperation in his voice.

"No!" Jennifer jumped out of her seat and grabbed the young Sergeant's arm. "You have to get it back!"

Richards wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back against his chest. She fought against the much stronger man, lashing out with her arms and feet. "Let me go! You've gotta get it back, Tommy! You have to. I didn't get to say… _good-bye_." After saying the word out loud, Jennifer broke down fully. Her sobbing echoed through the jumper as she turned, twisted Gunny's jacket in her hands and buried her face against his chest. He rubbed her back in a futile effort to calm her, but the only man who could possible soothe her at this moment was dying, if not gone already.

* * *

"...Kids," Zelenka finished for Rodney.

"Jennifer?" Rodney called out. He had to speak to her before it was too late. It did not matter that others could hear. She was the most important person in his life and he had to say good-bye. "Jennifer!"

"We lost communications with the jumper, Doctor McKay," Chuck's voice came over the intercom.

_No, this can't be happening. I can't even say good-bye to her._ "Is the jumper okay?" _Maybe Stackhouse got into trouble. He's not a pilot. He was only a Marine._

"Yes, it's still on the scanners," Chuck said.

"Rodney?" Carson's voice said tentatively.

"What?" Rodney turned to look at him. The physician's blue eyes were wide and he looked like he had seen a ghost.

"Did you run into Dumais at the same time as Hays?" Carson asked.

"Yes, exactly the same time. Why?" Rodney was irritated and very concerned that something happened to Jennifer.

"Don't take this wrong, Rodney, but, you should be dead," Carson said with awe in his voice.

Rodney looked around as he realized that he was not dead. "Oh, God! I'm still here!" A huge grin erupted on his face.

"Yes you are," Aiden said with a slight smile.

"Interesting," Radek said shaking his head.

"Interesting!" Rodney snapped.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but..." Carson began only to be interrupted by Chuck.

"We have reestablished contact with Jumper Two," the Canadian technician said. "They will be landing soon. Opening a channel."

"Doctor Beckett?" Stackhouse could be heard over the radio along with a distant sound like muffled sobbing.

"Sergeant, glad you could rejoin us," Carson said.

"Yes, Doctor. We're approaching the North Pier, but I don't know how helpful we'll be," the young soldier said.

"What's wrong?" Carson asked.

"It's Doctor Keller, she's…"

"What's wrong with Jennifer!" Rodney shouted. _If something happened to her because of his flying, I will kill the little punk._ "Were you damaged flying through the storm?"

"Rodney!" Jennifer's voice screamed over the radio. It was broken and raw like after her attack by the Wraith months ago.

"I'm still here," he said without being able to hide his happiness. "Are you okay?"

"I am now!" She said causing Rodney to smile. _She was upset because she thought I was dead. _

"We are just trying to figure out why Rodney is still alive after Johnson, Wagner, Dumais and Hays died. Rodney and Doctor Hays encountered Dumais at exactly the same time," Carson explained.

"Well, I don't care. I mean I really don't care!" Rodney said grinning broadly. Carson smiled and patted him on the arm.

"The gene! Rodney has the Ancient gene; the others didn't," Jennifer said.

_Of course._ Rodney snapped his fingers and shook his head. _If I wasn't scared of dying, I would have figured that out right away. I'm so glad Jennifer's here._

"But Rodney is not an Ancient," Elizabeth said.

"Aye, but he's been inoculated with the ATA gene," Carson chimed it. "You're right, love. Glad to have you back."

"I'm starting to get data, too. I'll tap into Elaine's scanner," Jennifer said.

"Elizabeth, have Peter help with that," Rodney said. _The sooner we get Jennifer up to speed the sooner we'll solve this mystery. _There was no doubt in Rodney's mind that Jennifer Keller would quickly unravel the problem. He had never had such faith in another human or alien for that matter. _I really need her in my department. What a waste for her to be in medical._

"Doctor Keller, did you just tell me the virus is designed to only kill humans?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, I'm human!" Rodney said with some annoyance.

"Yes, yes, we're making a point, Rodney," Carson said.

"We know the Ancients and those with the Ancient gene have changes to their brain chemistry, but we don't know exactly how. Apparently those changes have made Rodney resistant to this viruses' ability to rupture his blood vessels. He experienced the same visions, but that was all," Jennifer explained to Elizabeth.

"So we give everyone the gene therapy," Elizabeth said.

"No, it's not gonna do it," Jennifer replied.

"I've already been given the gene weeks ago. It didn't take," Radek said looking more and more frightened.

"The gene therapy is only effective in forty-eight percent of recipients," Rodney said._ Doesn't she remember Jennifer's presentation?_ "It won't work in everyone."

"Jennifer, if I was given the gene shot right now, how long would it take to kick in?" Aiden asked.

"A minimum of four hours, Aiden," she replied.

"I don't have four hours! I met up with McKay and Hays ninety minutes after they met up with Dumais. I have," he said checking his watch, "…a little under an hour before my brain explodes."

"Aiden, please calm down. Rodney, Carson and I need to review the data. I know you're terrified, but we're getting closer to solving this," she said in her calm _doctor_ voice. Rodney realized he could listen to that voice all day.

"Lad, listen to me. You've been up for almost twenty hours now and you're not thinking straight. Just try to stay calm," Carson added.

"I…I'm…" Aiden started and stopped as his eyes connected with Rodney's.

"We're on it. Give us a little time. We know there's a ticking clock." Rodney smiled slightly at his young teammate.

"Jennifer, Rodney and I are going to join Elaine in the field pathology lab. Give us a few minutes to get there," Carson said.

"I'm reviewing data and not going anywhere," she replied.

* * *

Doctor Biro and her team were conducting an autopsy on Hays while Carson and Rodney stood nearby.

"Are you certain you really wanna see this, Rodney?" Carson asked.

"Yes. Jennifer, are you seeing the data I am?" Rodney asked.

"Yes," she replied.

"Isn't this too accurate? How could something organic be that efficient?" Rodney asked.

"We're in the middle of another galaxy. Just because it's out of the ordinary for us doesn't mean it's not commonplace here," Carson said.

"No, Carson. I disagree. You can't change the basic laws of nature because we are someplace else," Jennifer said.

"Jennifer's absolutely right. Most of the habitable planets we've encountered thus far are, are, are carbon copies of Earth in terms of environmental conditions," Rodney agreed once again impressed at how smart Jennifer was.

"According to this they are striking at the same _exact_ spot in the _same_ manner. They are like little machines," Jennifer said.

Rodney's fingers snapped as his mind raced from Jennifer's statement. "Unless..." He rushed off to his lab to check something.

"Oh, my God, Rodney…" Jennifer said over the radio.

"I know. I'm on it," he replied absolutely certain Jennifer was thinking what he was.

"I'll be back," Carson called to his team as he hurried after Rodney. "Wait up, Rodney!"

Rodney's mind was racing at the possibility of this new discovery.

"Jennifer, what are you and Rodney thinking?" Carson asked.

"Let Rodney run some scans. I don't want to say anything without more facts," Jennifer said with obvious excitement in her voice.

Rodney led Carson back to the Ancient lab and grabbed his computer.

"Jennifer, I'm allowing you access to my files. Can you see this?" He asked and when she replied in the affirmative, he started explaining to Carson, Radek and the others. "Incubation to completion is exactly six hours. The visions are identical for all the infected, and the location of the aneurysm is the same for every single deceased."

"Which means?" Elizabeth asked.

"It's a nanovirus. One manufactured to kill humans," Jennifer said.

"Yes, I have them on my computer screen right now. I'll upload them for you to see, Elizabeth," Rodney said.

"A nanovirus?" Elizabeth asked with confusion in her voice.

"That's right," Rodney replied.

"Okay, let's pretend I don't know exactly what that is," the expedition leader said.

"Nanotechnology, it's, uh, technology that operates on a nanite scale. It's around, uh, around a billionth of a millimeter," Rodney explained.

"Doctor Weir, basically, they're microscopic machines that are able to carry out very specific tasks suited for their size," Jennifer continued. "It's the whole idea of being able to swallow a pill and having a million little robots go to work and cure whatever ails you."

"They are all infected with microscopic machines?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yeah, they're no bigger than a single-celled organism, although instead of having a sole purpose of curing a disease or mending a blood vessel..." Rodney said.

"...The virus is programmed to terrorize its victims by tapping into their visual cortex and then rupturing an artery in their brain..." Jennifer said.

"...Infecting others along the way as they can," Rodney said as he stared at the tiny particles moving through his hand, which was under a small scanner. It was rather surreal to think they were in his body. Suppressing a shiver, he listened as Jennifer continued the explanation for Elizabeth. _We make an awesome team._ He could not help a moment of happiness even though his colleagues were in dire straights.

"There's one good thing: I doubt they can multiply. I don't know how many nanites it takes to kill a human but eventually they'll spread themselves too thin," Jennifer said.

"Could it be Wraith?" Elizabeth asked.

"That would definitely be my first guess," Carson chimed in. He had a look of awe on his face as he listened to Jennifer and Rodney complete each other's thoughts.

"I'm not so sure about that," Rodney said.

"But the visions; the shrill sound you told me they make when they..." Carson said.

"I'll give you that they're equally terrifying, but why would the Wraith even create the equivalent of a WMD? They're killing us, not because they sadistically want us dead, but because they need to consume us for food. Look… it would be like the equivalent of cattle farmers creating mad cow disease. I don't buy it," Rodney said.

"I agree with Rodney, Carson. It makes no sense for the Wraith to do this," Jennifer said.

"And we did come across it in an Ancient lab," Elizabeth said.

"What, so wiping out the Wraith's food supply was a last-ditch consideration?" Rodney asked.

"I don't believe that for a moment. The Ancients would never create something like this," Carson said.

"It doesn't explain the visions either," Rodney said.

"Okay, this is fascinating and I can't wait to figure it out with you two, but for the moment, who built the virus is really the least of our concerns," Jennifer said.

"Good point," Rodney said.

"Wait! I have a million tiny robots running through my veins whose only purpose is to terrorize and kill me. You guys need to help," Aiden said. His eyes were big and he was obviously close to losing control.

"Try to stay calm, son," Carson said going over to Rodney's teammate.

"We are about to have hallucinations. We are infected, Carson, how do you expect us to act?" Radek said.

"There's gotta be a way. Come on McKay, Keller! You two are geniuses," Aiden pleaded.

"We're working on it Aiden, Radek." Jennifer's calm voice came over the radio. "Rodney has plenty of ways to destroy machines in his lab."

"Thanks, Jennifer," Rodney said with a smile. "I think."

* * *

"Elizabeth, I need to talk to John. Where is he?" Rodney asked as he finished a quick calculation. _Jennifer is absolutely right that I can knock out machines. Just need John to be able to follow my instructions._

"I'm here, McKay, what do you need?" John said.

"I need you to get to my lab ASAP," Rodney said. "I have a plan."

"On my way," John said. "Give me about five minutes tops."

"Great," Elizabeth said. "Do you care to share it?" She could not hide the annoyance in her voice.

"Well, small as they are, the nanovirus is still effectively just a machine run by a computer. The best way to knock out a computer is with an electromagnetic pulse. Thankfully, that's something we can do," Rodney said. _At least I hope the pulse is big enough to reach this lab._

"Is it dangerous?" Elizabeth asked.

"Only if you're a computer," Jennifer chimed in. "We'll have to shut everything off."

"Jennifer's right. Start shutting our stuff down now," Rodney said.

"We're on it as soon as you mentioned the EMP," Peter's voice came over the radio.

"Alright, McKay, I'm in your lab," John said slightly out of breath.

"Do you see it?" Rodney asked.

"Is it the big thing in the middle of the room?" John asked.

"Yeah, that's the one," Rodney said imagining that John saw the generator covered with yellow and black hazard strips.

"Should I pay attention to all these warnings?" John asked with some hesitation in his voice.

"Not today, no," Rodney replied and went on to tell Sheppard what he needed to do to get the generator ready to discharge.

* * *

"We're about through shutting down all the electronic gear we brought from Earth. We're still locked out of the Ancient controls, though. There's no way to power them down," Peter said.

"Well, it's not gonna be necessary. Ancient technology works differently than ours. An EM pulse shouldn't have any long-lasting effect on 'em," Rodney explained.

"Then we're ready," Grodin replied.

"Okay, here we go," Rodney said. _Please let this work. _

"Wait! How're we gonna know if it works?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, Sheppard's dialing up the most powerful pulse the generator can manage. It probably won't make it all the way down here but it should affect most of the central tower. I imagine once it wipes out the virus, the city should return control of it to you and end the lockdown," Rodney explained.

"It won't make it here!" Ford yelled moving his hands around in a near-panic state.

"If the pulse works, it will simply be a matter of walking you down to my lab, sitting you down in front of the EMP and repeating the process," Rodney explained trying to keep his voice calm. He tried to look reassuringly at his teammate and then spoke into the radio to Sheppard, "Major?"

"It's working. When should I hit the discharge button?" John asked.

"Okay, there should be a red overload light," Rodney said.

"Yeah, I see it," John replied.

"Wait 'til it comes on, give it a good ten count, and then discharge," Rodney said. _This better work._ The prospect of losing any more people today did not sit well with him. His stomach was already in knots and his heart had been racing for the past few hours. _Jennifer'll need to give me a sedative if I ever want to sleep again!_

"This is gonna be, uh… I'm gonna be fine, right?" John asked.

"Don't worry. I've probably been around more EMPs than anyone," Rodney explained.

"You'll be fine, John," Jennifer said over the radio and just the sound of her voice soothed Rodney's frazzled nerves.

"Yes, Major, you'll be _fine_," Rodney echoed with some annoyance at John for his overreaction. _The man is not afraid of bullets or Wraith but an invisible electromagnetic wave scares him. Soldiers!_

"Discharging…Now," John said.

In the Ancient lab, Rodney waited impatiently. "Anything?"

"Is it possible it might take some time?" Elizabeth asked.

"Doubtful." Rodney sighed and shook his head. _Dammit!_ "Are you still locked out of the Ancient mainframe?"

"Yes. Got any other ideas?" Elizabeth asked.

"Twenty nine minutes," Aiden said.

Rodney looked away from meeting the young man's eyes. "John, check the main breaker…"

"I've already tried that. It's blown," John said.

"Look, it's fixable, it's fixable, we just need to use a little trial and error." Rodney's mind was racing through some tests for John to try.

"Look, even if we get this thing working, who's to say the pulse is gonna get any bigger? Ford and Zelenka have twenty minutes before their arteries rupture. Are you sure an EMP will kill this thing?" John said.

"Yes," Rodney replied. _Think, McKay. Think!_

"All right, I have an idea," John said. "Give me a minute."

"What are you thinking?" Rodney could not image what John Sheppard could possible think of that he could not. "Sheppard?"

"What about a nuclear explosion in the upper atmosphere?" John asked.

_Why didn't I think of that!_ Rodney shook his head in desperation. _I must be tired if I can't think that fast._

"It's too dangerous," Elizabeth said.

"You'd rather lose a third of our population?" John snapped at her.

"We're not there yet, Major," Elizabeth responded.

"We're _there_! Ford and Zelenka are next. The people in the Mess Hall have a little over three hours. This is a full-blown outbreak. People are gonna keep dying unless we do this," John yelled.

"Even if we were able to get the EMP generator back online, the chances are slim that we would ever be able to get it powerful enough," Rodney said. _This is our only chance_.

"Can we bring the infected to the generator?" Elizabeth asked.

"We can't. The city won't let infected personnel through any of the doors," Peter said.

"The Major is right. The only way to create an EMP strong enough to wipe these little guys out is to..." Rodney started.

"...detonate a nuclear explosion in the atmosphere! Yes, I heard the first time!" Elizabeth said.

"I know it sounds severe but if the major was able to overload a naquadah generator twenty miles above the city the ensuing blast would be capable of creating a devastating electromagnetic shockwave. Definitely enough to knock this virus out," Rodney explained.

"And it would be perfectly safe from a radiological standpoint," Jennifer chimed in.

Once again the sound of her voice strengthened Rodney's resolve. _If we don't kill this thing, Jennifer can't come back to Atlantis. The gene therapy didn't work on her._

"Hopefully without destroying all our own computer equipment!" Peter added.

"It's worth the risk," Sheppard said.

Silence permeated the radio. "Okay, you have a go," Elizabeth said.

"Thank you. I'll take one of these generators in a puddle jumper and release it in the upper atmosphere," John said.

"Uh-oh," Peter said. "We haven't got a way to open the jumper bay doors. The facility is totally locked down."

"When John gets to a jumper, he can do it manually," Rodney said.

"I'm not so sure," Peter added.

"Wait. We're in a jumper already," Jennifer said. "John, where are you? We'll get as close as we can."

"Great idea, Jennifer. Meet me outside the main city entrance on the west pier. I'll be there in a few minutes," Sheppard said.

Rodney was both happy that the plan could be carried out so quickly and slightly terrified that Jennifer was in a jumper releasing a nuclear device.

"Sheppard," Rodney said.

"I'm a little busy, McKay," the Major replied sounding irritated.

"The EMP should not affect the jumper, but…" Rodney could not keep the fear he had from his voice. "You're only gonna have thirty seconds once you release it before it explodes. You need to get as far away as you can."

"Get as far away from the nuclear explosion as possible, that's good advice, Rodney. Thanks!" John said sarcastically.

"You're welcome," Rodney snarked back.

* * *

Waiting for Sheppard to get to the jumper and take off should have taken about ten minutes, but that time felt like an eternity to Rodney. _Everything will be fine. John's the best pilot there is. He'll get Jennifer away from danger. He won't let her get hurt. He likes her. As a friend. Only a friend. I hope._

"I'm releasing the generator... now!" John's voice suddenly broke over the radio.

Since the lab was deep in the city, it had no windows, so they had no idea when the explosion happened or when the nanites might be killed.

"Elizabeth?" Rodney called out.

"We haven't heard from the jumper. Peter thinks communications will be down after the blast," she responded.

"Of course," Rodney tried to sound confident as he avoided making eye contact with the others in the room.

"Major Sheppard?" Elizabeth called out only to be met by silence.

_Please be okay._ Rodney silently begged. _Jennifer was up there and… Communications are knocked out. That's all. John got them to safety and saved the others, too. I have to believe he did._ The alternative was much too horrific for him to imagine.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for another cliffhanger. I don't want to make the chapters too long any more, so there will be more breaks like this.  
**


	21. Hot Zone Part 3

**MGM owns all characters except OCs. Some dialogue from GateWorld.**

**Thanks scr1, dwparsnip, Theicemenace and betherdy babe for guidance and beta.**

**A/N: Warning, if you don't like heavy McKeller elements, you will not like this chapter. There are so many betas because this chapter took on many forms before it got to this version. **

* * *

Jennifer's heart was racing as she waited for John to exit the tower and take their jumper into the atmosphere to dump a nuclear bomb. _How will we outrun the shock wave?_

"Jennifer," John said as he came running out of the building and up the ramp.

"John," she replied casually, "having a good day?"

"Just peachy," he said as he carried the silver generator in his hands, laboring under its weight. Because John was in a containment suit, his movements were hampered. "It's already overloading."

"I'll take that, sir, and get it stowed in the compartment while you take us out," Richards said as he motioned for Stackhouse to open the floor grates to the lower ejection compartment. Jennifer sat on one of the benches in the back as she prepared to witness a nuclear detonation at close range.

The jumper quickly rose twenty miles above the planet's surface and the naquadah generator was jettisoned from the Puddle Jumper. John immediately took them into a steep dive and headed away from the explosion. "Hang on," he called to the reluctant passengers as he closed the door so they would not have to witness the intense blast.

Jennifer looked at the two soldiers seated with her. Unsure of what to say if they were going to die, the physician squeezed her eyes shut and said a prayer that everyone on Atlantis would be safe. _Please don't let us die in vain._ Jennifer reopened her eyes to look first at Richards on her right and then Stackhouse on her left as a violent shudder shook the jumper knocking the three of them to the floor.

"You okay, Doc?" Tommy Stackhouse's voice sounded through her pounding skull.

"I-I- think so," Jennifer said as she was lifted off the floor by a pair of strong arms and put on her back on the seat.

Richards called as he knelt left to her. "Stack, get the first aid kit, she's bleeding."

"What?" Jennifer tried to sit up only to be held down by Richards. "I'm fine. Let me up!"

"Stay still. You've got a scratch, but you know how much the head bleeds," he said in his calm voice.

"Gunny… did we make it?" Jennifer asked.

"I think so. I don't feel dead. Do you?" Richards said with no humor in his voice.

"Funny. You're a real comedian, you know," she said rolling her eyes.

"Everyone okay back there?" Sheppard said when the door opened. "We're heading back."

"We're fine. Doctor Keller was slightly injured, but nothing serious, sir," Richards said.

"It better not be serious or McKay'll tear me a new one," John said as Stackhouse laughed.

"I'm _fine_," Jennifer said as she felt her cheeks heating up at the idea that Rodney would be upset if she got hurt. _John says Rodney really cares about me, but it's only as a friend._

"This is Sheppard. We've cleared the blast and we're returning home," John could be heard talking into the radio. "Did it work?"

"Let me get up," Jennifer said as Gunny held the bandage to the top of her forehead. She took over applying the direct pressure as she pushed herself up and swung her legs off the bench.

"I think you should stay…" Richards started.

"I'm fine," Jennifer glared into the calm eyes of Richards. She lowered her voice and said to him quietly, "I don't want _anyone_ worrying about me when we get back to Atlantis."

Her emphasis on the word _anyone_ was not lost on Richards. "If you're really hurt and don't get checked out, Doctor McKay's _not_ going to be happy. He's already had a rotten birthday."

"Trust me, I'm _fine_," Jennifer said once again. Gunny helped her up and followed her into the cockpit where she asked Sheppard, "Did it work?"

John was obviously listening intently to the radio. "They're still… Yes! It worked!"

"Thank goodness," Jennifer said as she leaned over to hug John.

"Are you okay?" John asked looking at her.

"Yes. You're not the only one with a hard head," she said laughing with the Major.

* * *

Later that day, Rodney, Jennifer and Carson walked into Elizabeth's office where she and Sheppard were talking. The scientists spent several hours ensuring that the nanites were deactivated and all the people were free of infection. Jennifer desperately wanted to throw herself into Rodney's arms as soon as she returned to the city, but they each had work to do.

"You guys have a minute?" Rodney asked as they entered the room. "We've been able to spend some, uh, quality time with the, uh, nanovirus samples."

"From what we can tell, they've all been incapacitated," Jennifer said.

"Well, that's good news," Elizabeth replied.

"Yes. Also, upon further investigation, I think we can rule out that they were created by the Wraith. They're different than any Wraith technology we've come across so far," Rodney said.

"If not the Wraith, then who made 'em?" The Major asked.

"I honestly don't know, but whoever they were, let's just hope that they're not still around," Rodney said.

"Good work you three," Elizabeth said to the trio. "You all look exhausted and I know for a fact that two of you have not slept in almost forty-eight hours, so I order you off duty for at least twenty-four hours."

"But…" Rodney started only to get cut off by Carson.

"I agree with Elizabeth. You two get some rest," Carson said in his _doctor_ voice.

Jennifer looked at Rodney and smiled slightly. "Carson's right. You look exhausted."

"Well, you do too," Rodney responded looking critically at Jennifer. She had managed to clean up the blood and pull her bangs over the scratch on her forehead, hiding it from both men.

"Out, you two," Carson said motioning for them to leave.

* * *

Forty minutes later, when the door to Rodney's quarters opened to reveal the exhausted yet smiling Jennifer Keller, the equally exhausted physicist pulled her into his room and his waiting arms. The emotional roller coaster they both had been on over the past thirty-six hours followed by their desire to rush into each other's arms, which had to be postponed because of their duties, had them both on edge. After showering, they agreed to meet in Rodney's quarters. The deaths and near-deaths of so many colleagues and friends made them want to be with each other.

As Rodney held Jennifer and rubbed her back, his mind went over what happened and he trembled. _I faced death today. Really faced it. If Jennifer' didn't create th gene therapy, I would've died like Dumais and Hays and Peterson and..._ He lost five brilliant scientists today, but Jennifer lost friends. Pushing her back slightly, he looked into her teary eyes. She forced a smile onto her flushed and tear-streaked face.

Without a word, Rodney lowered his lips to Jennifer's mouth. He wanted to erase the fear and pain of the day for both of them. The physicist needed to feel the warmth and joy he felt the last time they kissed. Knowing that Jennifer forgave him the first time for being bold and kissed him two weeks ago, he felt confident she would not pull away this time and he was right.

* * *

Jennifer could not stop Rodney from kissing her if she wanted to after all that happened today. The loss of so many friends all at once numbed her to the point of not feeling much of anything. Once she got to Rodney's quarters and he took her in his arms, she could not hold back her tears and was thrilled that he kissed her. _He feels so good. _

Rodney's tongue stroked and teased her own. His hands moved over her body, sliding down to her hips and up her back. All the feelings were so new that Jennifer felt afraid of their intensity.

"Jennifer," Rodney moaned as he kissed her neck for the first time.

"Aaahh, Rodney," she moaned. The feel of his lips on her face and neck and his hand sliding over her t-shirt was more than she could take. Moaning and pulling him tightly against her, Jennifer felt her first real taste of desire. She had read romance novels as a young woman, but always laughed at the _achy, throbbing _descriptions given to certain parts of a woman's anatomy. Feeling those aches firsthand, Jennifer realized those romance novelists just might have known what they were talking about after all. _I can't get close enough to him._

"Jennifer, I don't want to be alone," Rodney breathed into her ear, as his hand slid around her back and traced a path up her spine. He continued to kiss her lips, face and neck as she clung to him and returned the kisses with equal fervor.

"Me either," she said between kisses as a tremor passed through her body. "I don't want to be alone tonight. Not after…" Jennifer broke off as new tears welled up in her eyes.

"Really?" _Jennifer wants sleep with me? I can't believe it._

"Yes. Just let me get my stuff and I promise I won't bring Carson this time," Jennifer said trying to smile.

"Carson!" Rodney almost shouted. _What __**is**__ she talking about?_

"Don't you remember the last time we spent the night together? In the holodeck room with Carson?" Jennifer asked raising her eyebrows.

"No, I mean… Yes, I remember… " Rodney said, more confused than he normally was around her.

"I know we don't have power for the room, so we'll just have to watch movies, eat candy and keep each other company here," Jennifer said trying to smile.

A strange thought was forming in the back of Rodney's mind. _Didn't Jennifer agree to sleep with me? Now she just wants to hang out? What's going on?_

Jennifer stared at him, making him feel uncomfortable. "I can't believe what happened today," she said with tears leaking from her eyes.

"I know. I've known some of them for years, but…" Rodney stopped to clear his throat as his arms pulled Jennifer close to him again. "…they were not my _friends_, like they were yours. I'm so sorry."

"I've never had so many friends before I got here and-and now they just… they just keep…" Jennifer could not continue as she cried again.

"I know and I'm sorry," Rodney said resting his head against hers while stroking her back.

"But-but the worse was-was that…" Jennifer's voice was so broken up; she had to stop for several minutes. "If I didn't develop the gene therapy…"

"I know." Rodney knew what she was going to say. "I'd be dead like all the others without the Ancient gene. Well, allow me to thank you."

"You don't have to thank me," Jennifer smiled and swiped at the tears on her face. "I need to stop crying. Let's find a movie and some junk food."

Jennifer and Rodney settled onto the couch with candy and a silly cartoon movie several minutes later. Taking their earlier closeness as a sign that it was suddenly _okay_ to sit _very_ close to him, Jennifer snuggled close to his left side. _Not that I really mind._ Holding her in his arms was the only way he would fall asleep after his rotten day as well.

* * *

When Rodney woke up a few hours later with Jennifer lying across his lap, it took him several minutes to be able to breath at the sight of her blond hair splayed over his legs and lower abdomen. He had every intention of getting up and covering her with a blanket and going to sleep in his bed. Of course Jennifer had other ideas. As he attempted to move out from under her, she began to whimper and all his resolve broke down.

"Rodney, don't go," she mumbled as she shifted and pressed her hand against his thigh to push herself up. Her shoulder brushed against him in an intimate way and he gasped.

"Sorry," Jennifer said quickly sitting up next to him. His arm was still around her shoulders keeping her close to him. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Ah… No… Um… You didn't…" Rodney could barely speak after the contact and when he looked at her, Jennifer's hair was messy and framed her face like a golden halo. She was still sleepy and blinked a few times to focus on him with a smile forming on her lips. He could not take his eyes off her and wanted to kiss her again like they had earlier.

Obviously, Jennifer could read his mind because she leaned forward, slid her hands over his shoulders and pressed her lips to his. Since Jennifer was initiating the kiss, Rodney held himself in check and only placed his free hand on her waist. As she moved her mouth over his and used her tongue to pry his smiling mouth open, he groaned again, which caused her to pull back. "Sorry."

"Jennifer, stop saying you're sorry," Rodney said as he gently but firmly pulled her back to him.

"Thanks for being patient. I'm glad you know I never did this before or it would be really awkward," Jennifer said as she leaned back to kiss him.

"What!" Rodney said sharply as he quickly pushed her back with a shocked expression on his face. No thoughts penetrated his genius brain except the fact that the responsive, beautiful, sexy woman practically sitting on his lap just said she never kissed anyone before.

"I know, I know, I've never made out with anyone," Jennifer smiled a shy smile as she settled her hands on his chest, "really pathetic, huh?"

"Jennifer, are you saying you're a virgin?" Rodney held his breath for the answer, but deep down, he already knew. _Jennifer Keller is really as sweet and innocent as she looks._

"Rodney, you know that," Jennifer said.

"How the hell would I know that!" Rodney yelled because he was not sure what he was hearing.

"My dad told you. Remember? I was so horrified and then you said if you went to college with me you would have asked me out. It was really sweet," Jennifer said looking at him like he had forgotten Pi.

"But…" Rodney did remember the conversation. "…But I thought you never had a serious relationship. Hell, I never had a girlfriend I brought home to my family. And _not_ dating _doesn't_ mean you're a virgin." Rodney was still trying to rapidly rethink his position. His natural reaction was to rant and rave but he realized that Jennifer has just shared something important to her with him and he fought to keep himself in check.

"So what if I'm a virgin?" Jennifer asked as the physician looked at him puzzled and slightly annoyed.

"Jennifer, do you have any idea what could have happened if you kept kissing me?" Rodney asked. _You were so out of control and ready to take her, you could have…_

"Rodney, you're not some horny teenager who was going to jump me," Jennifer said with a giggle.

_She's laughing! I've never been so aroused in my life and she laughs._ "Jennifer, you're a physician. I can't believe you don't know about sex!" Rodney defended himself because, after all, he _did_ nearly jump her.

"Of course I know about sex, but I also know you're a grown man and I imagine you've had sex before," Jennifer said. "If I got scared, I know you'd stop."

"If you got scared? What if you didn't!" Rodney was pacing and waving his hands around.

"Then I wouldn't be a virgin much longer, would I?" Jennifer said, sounding angrier than before.

"Jennifer! You can't just let _someone_ take your virginity," Rodney said getting concerned that Jennifer really did _not_ realize how difficult it could be for guys to control themselves. As his mind ran through the list of other men he suspected of wanting to sleep with Jennifer, the familiar wave of protectiveness that he felt so often around her came to bear.

"I'm not with _just someone_. I'm with… _you_," Jennifer said and the volume of her voice dropped when she said the last word.

"Jennifer." Rodney did not know what to say and settled for avoidance. "Today has been really difficult on you… and me. We're exhausted and not thinking straight."

"Rodney." Jennifer began walking toward him. "We're very good friends and… well, I've never had a friend like you before. I probably shouldn't kiss a friend like I just kissed you, but… Well, it felt good."

"Jennifer, please…" Rodney did not want to hear anymore. _There's no way you and Jennifer can be __**more**__ than friends. You're stranded in another galaxy where you could die at any minute. You need to stop this, now._

"Rodney, let me finish," Jennifer said as she stopped in front of him, close enough to touch but not quite. "I never had a boyfriend before and never had any guys interested in me. Since I came to Pegasus, people suddenly want to have sex with me or make out and I don't…"

"What people!" Rodney said sharply once again. _Who the hell __**else**__ is she talking about?_

"Rodney, stop interrupting." Jennifer crossed her arms and scowled at him.

"You just said _people_. I want to know who tried to kiss you besides me!" Rodney growled.

"Remember when I got injured on M7G-677?" Jennifer said.

"Yes," Rodney said as he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Oh my God, Jennifer! Did someone try to attack you!"

"No, Rodney. No one tried to attack me. The long and short of it is that Keras propositioned me and I was frightened, so I ran off and fell down a hill. Just like I told you." Jennifer's cheeks turned bright red and she looked away from his intense gaze.

"What do you mean?" _What did that little bastard do?_ Rodney's protectiveness of Jennifer surpassed his better judgment and he stepped closer to her and touched her chin, turning her face back toward his own.

"He said he wanted to have sex with me. I got scared and ran off," Jennifer said looking directly into his eyes. "I swear that's it."

Rodney closed his eyes and felt his shoulders slump. Against all better judgment, he pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. As he imagined her wandering frightened through the woods, any anger dissipated. _Of course she's a virgin; she's your perfect woman and that means no other guys would have touched her. _"I'm sorry you got scared. I should have gone with you on your first off world mission."

Jennifer slid her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. "Are you still mad at me?"

"Mad at you? Why would I be mad at you?" Rodney asked.

Jennifer pushed back so she could look at him. "You seemed angry when I said I was a virgin. Not sure why, but you were starting to carry on like you do when you're upset."

"Sorry. I'm exhausted…" He could not say he was sexually frustrated, so he fell back on exhaustion. "We… we should get some sleep."

"Okay, but…" Jennifer paused and looked down before looking up with a shy glance, "...I'd rather not go back to my quarters. Can I sleep on the couch?"

"No, you can sleep in the bed. I'll sleep on the couch," Rodney said with any thoughts of asking her to leave gone.

"Are you sure?" Jennifer asked with raised eyebrow. "I don't want you complaining about your back in the infirmary tomorrow."

"I'll be fine." Rodney said. "I've got extra blankets."

* * *

Rodney lay in his bed begging his body to calm down as Jennifer, who was wrapped in a blanket, lay in his arms_. _Jennifer had started crying, forcing Rodney to leave the couch to comfort her and, then, she said she could sleep better if he held her. Wrapping her in his blanket was the only way he could control his racing libido while comforting her.

_Reciting Pi doesn't even help!_ Since he was a child, reciting the constant had helped him calm down during times of high stress, but he never had to use it to suppress sexual desire before. _I'll never sleep now. Sheppard better not drag us off on a mission tomorrow or I'll kill him. _

**

* * *

**

**A/N: As I've been saying that I didn't want them this intimate this fast, but they are meant to be together. We'll have to see where they continue to take us. This was an extremely difficult chapter to write because it does change their relationship a lot. I hope you like where it's going. If not, I have enjoyed your support and that you read the story to this point.**


	22. Sanctuary

**MGM owns all characters except OC's. Some dialogue taken from . That's right, GateWorld did not have a transcript.**

**Thank you for the positive feedback on Hot Zone 3. Thanks Betherdy Babe for beta.  
**

**A/N: Just a little drabble I had regarding this episode. This scene fits in after Carson tells Elizabeth and Rodney about Chaya's health.  
**

* * *

"Carson, where's Jennifer?" Rodney snapped. He was not able to kill John for rousing him from sleep for a mission early this morning like he vowed to last night. Leaving Jennifer sleeping like a baby while wrapped up in his blankets was not what he wanted to do, but he could not have her leave his quarters with him either. Even though nothing happened between them, Rodney was concerned about Jennifer's reputation. _The idiots around here think she's with half-a-dozen different guys, I don't need to add any more fuel to the stupid rumors about her._

"She's on the mainland," Carson said as he looked up from his computer.

"What's she doing there? You know I thought she was supposed to be on duty when I was on an away mission. She is _my_ doctor," Rodney said as he glared at the Scotsman.

"First, we don't have _specific_ patients, but Jennifer and I _like_ our co-workers so _we_ take care of you. Second, there is a wee baby in the Athosian village that is far more important than you," Carson said turning back to his laptop.

"Who went with her?" Rodney asked.

"Why don't you ask Control? I do know that Sergeant Richards finally got his day off," Carson said trying to ignore Rodney.

"At least he's always around if she gets in trouble, unlike you," Rodney said and because he was angry in general, he took it out on Carson. This priestess and her refusal to help them save thousands, _millions_ of lives only added to his sour mood.

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?" Carson shook his head and looked up at Rodney.

"You promised her dad you'd look out for her and you haven't been doing a good job," Rodney said. In truth he was glad Carson was not around much because he was certain the Scot would notice the way that Rodney spent most of his free time with Jennifer.

"And so did you," Carson said angrily.

"And I do watch out for her," Rodney said. _It's not a total lie._

Something that had been bugging Rodney for some time came to the surface as he turned to leave. "You don't think Richards is… _interested_ in Jennifer, do you?"

"He's my age. Men my age see a woman like Jennifer and wish we were ten or fifteen years younger, so anything's possible," Carson said.

"Jennifer thinks of you as a father!" Rodney yelled. An image of Carson ogling Jennifer made him angry. "You should be ashamed of yourself!"

"Calm down, Rodney. Jennifer is family to me. I've known her since she was fifteen. I was merely saying that Richards probably wished _he_ was younger once or twice," Carson said rolling his eyes.

Suddenly, Carson got up to stand directly in front of the Canadian and stare into his eyes. "What are _your_ _intentions_ regarding Jennifer while we're talking about it?"

"I'm going back to my lab. I'll have them contact me when Jennifer's back. Something's not right about this woman and I'm getting to the bottom of it with Jennifer's help," Rodney growled at his friend and stalked out of the infirmary.

"I'm sorry I didn't find anything other than that she's amazingly healthy," Carson said. "And don't think that I didn't notice how you changed the subject."

* * *

As the day progressed and he discovered Jennifer would not be back until tomorrow, his frustration simmered. Once Chaya activated the _alien detector_, as Rodney called it, he could not sleep and waited in the control room for Jennifer's return while initializing and trying to figure out all that the device did. He was sure the physician would help him figure out what was so wrong about Chaya. _I just need to bounce things off Jennifer and we'll get it figured out. __  
_

* * *

It was not until mid-morning the next day that Jennifer returned._  
_

"Jennifer," Rodney called after her sounding out of breath.

"Hello, Rodney." Jennifer stopped in the corridor on the way to her quarters. She was exhausted and drained because of the past twenty-four hours on the Mainland. Once she got out of the jumper and said good-bye to Markham and Richards, her thoughts turned to sleep.

"Oh... you look exhausted," Rodney said as he stopped next to her. He reached out to take her bag from her hands and when their skin touched, Jennifer trembled.

Every free moment she had the last day and night was spent daydreaming about their night _together_. Being held by Rodney had made her feel safer than she had since coming to Pegasus and had allowed her to sleep soundly. A red flush covered her face as she glanced around to see if anyone was in the corridor. Gunny Richards had just turned down another corridor so she was alone with Rodney and felt slightly awkward, like someone would after their first date.

"It was pretty exhausting fighting with Adira and Kanaan for a day," Jennifer said. "How was the mission?"

Rodney visibly swallowed and his eyes darted around. It was obvious he felt guilty about what he was going to ask her. "Um, not good. I mean we found this incredible weapon that took out several Wraith darts, which I have to say, I thought were going to kill us…"

"Rodney," Jennifer interrupted stepping closer and touching his arm. "I'm sorry. You're all okay, I take it?"

"Oh, yes. We're all fine," Rodney said as the corners of his mouth turned up at her concern. "Come on, I'll tell you while we walk. I imagine you need to get changed."

Jennifer knew without a doubt that Rodney was desperate to ask her to help with something, but the fact that he held his tongue so she could get settled caused a smile to spread over her lips and energy to course through her. "It's obviously really important, but I do need to grab something in the mess hall to eat."

Rodney filled Jennifer in on all the details of the mission and finally said, "John is wrapped around this woman's finger. Our head of military is under the control of some alien priestess."

"John hasn't been himself since your incident with that Wraith," Jennifer said with sadness in her voice. "I know he blames himself for Brendan and Ben's deaths."

"He's not the only one," Rodney said quietly, but Jennifer heard him.

"Rodney…"

"I know. I know, stop thinking about it," Rodney said putting a hand up to stop her from scolding him.

"Not sure if you heard, but John disobeyed Elizabeth during the lock down." Jennifer leaned close to Rodney when she spoke. "I truly hate gossip, but he undermined her authority with Bates. It's just not like him at all."

Rodney agreed and then proceeded to explain to Jennifer about Carson's examination of Chaya, which revealed that she had no physical defects and was in perfect health, further intriguing the physician as she gathered her food.

When Rodney mentioned Chaya had the Ancient gene, Jennifer stopped getting food and looked up at him. "We haven't found anyone in Pegasus yet with the Ancient gene. I mean, there _have_ to be people here with the gene because they are descended from the Ancients like us."

"Well, she must be pretty strong because she activated a biometric sensor array," Rodney said not noticing that Jennifer stood rooted on the spot.

"Biometric sensor array?" Jennifer's eyes grew wide and she stared with obvious annoyance at Rodney.

"Yes, like some sort of alien detector, which she set off right away," Rodney said as he grabbed a roll and reached past the silent, staring doctor to get a container of trail mix.

Jennifer could not believe Rodney had not told her about the gene or the new device until now. Because she was annoyed and extremely playful around him after their night together, she swatted his upper arm.

"Hey, what was that for?" Rodney said with mock pain in his voice.

"You found a device to measure unique biometric signatures of people on Atlantis?" Jennifer repeated still staring at him.

"Yes, not sure how it works, but it looks at unique energy patterns around all of us. I've been playing with it all night and learned a few things," Rodney continued as set his food on Jennifer's tray on the counter.

Jennifer swatted him a second time as he yelped, "Are you going to tell me why you keep hitting me?"

"You find an alien detector that looks at human energy patterns like out of Star Trek _AND_ you find the first human in the Pegasus galaxy with the Ancient gene and you start our conversation with concern about Sheppard's love life!" Jennifer nearly shouted at him.

Rodney obviously had no clue why Jennifer was upset based on the look of uncertainty and fear on his face.

"Rodney," Jennifer calmed her voice down and spoke slower. "I have spent most of my time here working on the Ancient interface, Ancient genes, Ancient technology, energy patterns. You have just told me you found a device to measure these energy patterns and detect differences. Don't you think I'd find that fascinating and want to investigate it as soon as possible!" She could not help the increasing volume as she neared the end of her question.

"Uh…" Rodney was speechless.

"Come on, let's go," Jennifer turned to leave.

"What about your food?"

"Rodney, this is so much more exciting than food," she called back to him as she bit into a piece of fruit that tasted like a pear.

"Sorry. I'm not used to having a woman I like be as interested in my work as you are," Rodney said as he walked quickly to catch up with her carrying her tray of food and holding a bottle of water.

Once again, Jennifer stopped walking as Rodney walked past her. He paused and looked back with a raised eyebrow. "Why are we stopping? You're not going to hit me, again, are you?"

Jennifer was stunned at Rodney's previous statement and could do nothing but let a silly grin spread over her face. _I'm not used to having a woman I like… Rodney just admitted he likes me._ "No, I won't hit you again. We better go, so I can see this new device before one of your staff breaks it."

The physician decided not to call Rodney on his statement, since he obviously did not realize the significance of his words to Jennifer. _We're both exhausted and we can discuss our new __**relationship**__ later._

* * *

Peter Grodin was seated at a piece of equipment in the control room when Jennifer entered. She was trying to remember the last time she was there. _Was it really after Manara and Rodney's injury? _

"Jennifer," Peter said with a smile. "Did Rodney tell you about..."

"Yes, a biometric device that could help us differentiate between those with the Ancient gene and those without and then help us design a way to run Ancient technology without people," Jennifer interrupted him.

"Jennifer, you sure now how to smooth-talk an engineer," Peter said with a laugh.

"I've had a lot of practice lately," Jennifer said as she felt her cheeks heat up. Taking a chance and glancing at Rodney, she saw him glaring at the British engineer seated next to her. _Is he jealous of Peter?_

"Running the city without people. That's an idea I would love." Peter smiled broadly at Jennifer and shifted his chair over so she could sit next to him.

"Okay, let's focus. I've found something really strange about our visitor already," Rodney said as he physically positioned himself between Jennifer and Grodin, leaning over the device. He placed one hand on the back of Jennifer's chair and used the other to point at the screen. "See her signature versus everyone else?"

Jennifer looked at a thick wave pattern, at least 100% greater than that of the others and said with awe, "This is amazing."

"Rodney," Elizabeth said from behind them. "Jennifer, welcome back. I'm sorry Rodney didn't let you get any rest."

"Don't worry about it. This device is going to keep me awake for weeks," she said with a smile to Elizabeth.

"Rodney, could I have a word?" Elizabeth asked.

"Uh, sure," Rodney said glancing at Jennifer and then glaring at Peter as he stepped out of the room with Elizabeth.

Jennifer grabbed her pack from where Rodney set it down and pulling out her laptop, she connected to the network and called Carson.

"Jennifer, where are you? I didn't see you come through the infirmary?" her friend asked.

"No, I'm in the control room with a new toy," she said with a smile on her face. "Could you do a quick favor for me?"

"Anything, love, but I think you should be getting some rest instead of listening to Rodney," Carson said with an annoyed tone of voice.

"You, more than anyone, should know I _love_ this stuff. I'm looking at the medical tests you did and did not see you scan her blood for her ATA level," Jennifer said as she scanned quickly over all the other data Carson had captured. "Do you mind putting a blood sample on the scanner? I can monitor the results from here. It'll be interesting to see how the first person we meet in Pegasus with the ATA gene compares to others in our galaxy."

"Not a problem, love, now I want you to come here for an exam and then get some rest _soon_," Carson said with a firm voice. "I'll come and carry you away if I need to."

"Yes, Carson. I hear you and thanks for your help," Jennifer said with a smile. _He's really beginning to sound like my dad._

* * *

Five minutes later, Jennifer's laptop beeped. She looked at the data on the screen, tapped quickly to pull up another file and promptly dropped her laptop.

"Jennifer, is everything okay?" Peter asked as she jumped up and stood in stunned silence for a moment.

"Oh my God, I have to talk to Elizabeth. Where did she go?" Jennifer spun around and did not see the expedition leader anywhere.

"She's in the conference room with the senior team and Chaya…" Chuck began only to have Jennifer run away in the middle of his response.

"Many members of your expedition would be welcomed on Proculus, Doctor Weir, but there are others…"

The doors of the conference room were open and Jennifer heard a voice that she did not recognize. _It must be her.  
_

Stopping outside the doors, Jennifer caught Rodney's eye. Noticing Rodney looking out the door, Elizabeth, Teyla, John and Chaya turned. The moment the beautiful woman's eyes connected with Jennifer's, the physician knew that Chaya was aware of her discovery.

"Can you read my mind?" Jennifer asked as she stepped into the room looking directly back into Chaya's brown eyes as the alien rose from her seat to stand before Jennifer.

"In a sense, if someone's mind is as open to knowledge and discovery as yours is," Chaya said smiling, but looking sad.

"Jennifer, what the hell is going on here?" John stood next to Chaya and looked back and forth between them.

"Jennifer?" Elizabeth stepped up to Chaya's left.

"She's an Ancient, Elizabeth. A real live Ancient!" Jennifer felt like a kid on Christmas as she spoke with excitement in her voice.

"What!" Rodney shouted as he quickly came around the table to stand next to Jennifer. "The device told you that?"

"Not entirely," Jennifer continued to smile at Chaya, who continued to look sad.

"I just don't understand the act. I mean you must know we'd give just about _anything_ to talk to you, to learn from you. I mean, what is it? What, are you checking us out?" Rodney said with awe in his voice.

"I see that in my desire to come to Atlantis, I have revealed too much of myself." Chaya looked with genuine sorrow at John. "I _am_ what you call an Ancient. And it is also true that I can never offer your people sanctuary. But you are wrong as to why I came here."

"Why_ did_ you come here?" John asked with open anger in his voice.

"You, John," Chaya said.

"Me?" John replied looking uncomfortable.

"I have lived in solitude for so long that when you asked me to come to Atlantis, I..." Chaya broke off.

"Oh my God, he _is_ Kirk!" Rodney exclaimed as Jennifer raised an eyebrow and swatted his arm for the third time.

"This was never about, uh..." He looked at the others. "Could we just have a moment to ourselves here?"

"No!" Rodney, Elizabeth and Teyla shouted in unison.

"That's all right. I've stayed here long enough." Chaya left the room as John glared at the others in the room and then followed her.

"How did you figure out she's an Ancient?" Rodney asked Jennifer with wonder in his voice.

"Her ATA level," Jennifer said.

"What?" Elizabeth asked.

"I've been working with Peter and Radek to designate a ranking system of ATA level and the sophistication level of Ancient technology. The chair, for instance, or a jumper requires a very high level of the gene for complete operation. Some basic equipment doesn't require the gene at all once it's been activated. I used the Ancient that was found on Earth in Antarctica, Ayiana, as my baseline for this work. When Carson ran Chaya's samples through the machine, her level equaled Ayiana's. I came here as soon as I got the data to tell you," Jennifer said in rapid Rodney-fashion.

"I knew it. I just knew you and I would figure this out," Rodney said with pride in his voice that made Jennifer flush.

Elizabeth's eyebrows rose as commotion outside the conference room drew them out to find Chaya disappearing into a glowing cloud of energy and activating the Stargate.

"I'm taking a Jumper back to Proculus," John yelled.

"What just happened?" Elizabeth said.

"There's only way to find out," John said as he ran out of the Gateroom.

"Go," Elizabeth said turning back to Jennifer, Teyla and Rodney.

"Sorry, I was wrong, she's not a real _live_ Ancient, she's an _ascended_ Ancient," Jennifer added.

"Good work, Jennifer," Elizabeth said. "It appears the Ancient research you've been doing with Rodney's department has really paid off. Too bad she won't share her knowledge with us."

"What a waste," Rodney said as he shook his head.

"I hope John will be okay," Teyla said.

"Yeah, he sure didn't need this," Jennifer said to the Athosian.

"How is the newest Athosian doing?" Teyla asked as they walked back to the control room.

"I was going to find you and ask for your help," Jennifer said.

"Is something wrong?" Elizabeth asked.

"Adira is not doing well since the delivery and she refuses to come here so I can help her. I was hoping you would go back with me tomorrow and talk to her and Kanaan," Jennifer asked Teyla.

"Certainly," Teyla said with a smile. "You look exhausted. I think you need to get some rest."

"Thank you, Teyla. Carson wants me to stop in first," Jennifer said suddenly stifling a yawn.

"I will accompany you then," Teyla said.

"Oh… sure," Jennifer glanced at Rodney to see a look of disappointment on the physicist's face. It was a feeling that Jennifer echoed, but could say nothing about in front of Elizabeth or Teyla, so she followed her Athosian friend to the infirmary.

**

* * *

A/N: I always thought Rodney suddenly gaining **_**intuition **_**for this episode only**_**, **_**was a big stretch by the writers. Sorry if I upset anyone who loved that about Rodney in this episode.  
**


	23. Before I Sleep

**MGM owns all characters except OC's.**

**Thanks to scr1, dwparsnip and Betherdy Babe, my betas. Thanks to all the reviewers and people who put this on their favorites and alerts.  
**

**A/N: This is my least favorite episode of Season 1. Rodney dying is a big part of it, but I think I've been turned off of time travel in general from over-use on Star Trek and its progeny. Fluff warning, so bear with me because there has not been much fluff in this story and won't be. This is the calm before the storm, which kicks off at the end of The Brotherhood.  
**

* * *

"Jennifer!" Carson's voice penetrated the fog of sleep in Jennifer's brain.

Lifting her head from her arms, which were resting on her desk, she mumbled, "Carson? Wha-what do you want?"

"I don't believe it. You've fallen asleep at your desk, _again_!" Carson growled from behind her.

The younger physician turned and saw Carson with arms crossed, glaring at her and Rodney McKay with the same posture and expression slightly behind him. "Hello, boys. How are you?"

"I'm getting tired of finding you sleeping in this office, young lady." Carson stepped over to glare down at her. "I will have Rodney lock you in your quarters and remove all contact with the outside world for forty-eight hours…"

"Oh, just try, Carson." Jennifer looked around her mentor and smiled at Rodney, who continued to scowl at her.

It had been over a week since she had last been alone with Rodney. After Chaya left and John returned safely, the Major flew her and Teyla to the mainland to convince Adira to return to Atlantis with the baby. Once they got back, Jennifer was tied up with her patients or working with the biometric sensor array along with Peter and Radek.

Rodney and his team were exploring some unmapped sections of the city each day and then Rodney was doing his regular research, so he had no time for her. Jennifer was now _positive_ that Rodney liked her and wanted to spend time with her. Unfortunately, that knowledge had to be enough because there was no way they could be together like she wanted them to.

_John said Rodney needs to focus on saving us all and can't be distracted by me. He's right, but boy does that suck._

"Jennifer, you need to take…" Rodney began as he stepped over to her, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Don't you start in, too! You've been exploring the city, reporting back with the latest real estate investment ideas you've found, playing with the biometric device or doing your day job, so when you get eight hours of sleep a night for more than one day in a row, you can lecture me," Jennifer stood up and put her hands on her hips glaring at her friends.

"I was going to say we've got an amazing and exciting discovery for you to help with," Rodney said, trying to look wounded.

Jennifer knew him well enough to know he was full of it. _He was going to tell me to go to sleep for the rest of the day, too._ "And what _is_ this amazing discovery?"

"Rodney?" Carson's voice still sounded angry.

"Carson?" Rodney responded back to him with wide eyes.

"Jennifer is not going to be running off with us. She's going to get a meal and go to bed," Carson said firmly glaring at her.

"What did you find?" Jennifer ignored her mentor and smiled her sweetest smile at the physicist, promptly causing him to melt.

"Possibly another Ancient in a stasis chamber," Rodney said with a grin and slight flush to his cheeks.

"What!" Jennifer was stunned. _Another Ancient._

"Rodney McKay, you're not helping. Didn't you just tell me I was not watching out for Jennifer as much as you were?" Carson snapped.

"You guys _talk_ about me?" Jennifer looked between her two closest friends and held her anger in check. _They promised Dad they'd watch out for me. The last time you slept for six hours was in Rodney's arms a week ago, so you know you're exhausted. I can hardly tell Carson that's the only way I'll sleep, though._

"Yes, love, we worry about you." Carson lost the anger in his voice as he once again looked upon his petite friend, who was pale and had dark circles under her eyes.

"That's really sweet, but what about this Ancient in stasis." Jennifer wanted to change the subject because Rodney was looking red and she knew it was only a matter of time before Carson noticed the glances and smiles they exchanged.

"We don't know if she's an Ancient, but who else would be in stasis on Atlantis?" Rodney said.

"Well, if Chaya is any indication, I'm not your best choice for a first contact situation, if you know what I mean," Jennifer said with a smile. "Not to mention, I can't get too far away because Adira doesn't want anyone else treating the baby except me."

"What's wrong with the baby?" Rodney asked with genuine concern in his voice.

This caused Jennifer to smile. "She is suffering from colic, like many babies throughout the universe do. Adira is concerned, like all mothers, that something serious is wrong. She got herself so worried she wasn't producing enough milk for Lorianna…"

"Okay! Enough!" Rodney threw his hands in the air as his face got red and his eyes widened.

"Jennifer, love, I'd like you to get some rest. If we need your help with the Ancient in stasis, we'll get you," Carson said as he stepped over and hugged her, ignoring Rodney's reaction at the mention of breast feeding.

"I'll try." Jennifer returned the hug and realized how much she missed her oldest friend. "And we'll grab something to eat in the next day or two, okay?"

"I'm looking forward to it," Carson said as he turned and left.

"Rodney, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable talking about Adira and the baby. I don't imagine you've had lots of babies around," Jennifer said.

"My sister is nine years younger than me, so I was pretty old when she was a baby. I remember she cried all the time," Rodney said smiling shyly.

"Maybe we can catch up for a meal and you can tell me about her," Jennifer said with a smile.

"Sure, but I don't know when," Rodney said looking disappointed. "I hope you're eating full meals at least and trying to rest."

"Yes, Rodney. I'm having lunch with Peter today, so you can check up with him to make sure I ate," she said with a grin that she just could not wipe off her face in his presence.

"Peter? You spend a lot of time with him," Rodney stated angrily.

"Well, we have been collaborating since Antarctica and I've known him only one day less than I've known you," Jennifer said smiling. _Rodney's jealous._ She could see it in the set of his jaw, the way his eyes glanced around and his stiffening posture. "But you are still my _favorite_ engineer, if it makes you feel any better."

Rodney stepped closer to her with his eyebrows cocked and a smirk on his face. "That's nice to know."

"Well… don't get too cocky," Jennifer said in almost a whisper because Rodney moved so close that there were mere inches between their bodies. She had not been this close to him in a while and it made her heart race as she swayed toward him.

"Doctor Keller!" Marie's voice echoed through the office area.

Physically shaking herself out of the trance she was under staring into Rodney's bright blue eyes, she stepped to her doorway and answered, "What is it Marie?"

"Sergeant Stackhouse's gate team returned with some kind of stomach virus. Appears to be food poisoning as Sergeant Richards is fine and said he ate nothing on the planet," Marie said stopping outside the door.

"Oh, that sounds like fun," Rodney said as he stepped out of Jennifer's office causing Marie's eyes to widen.

"I absolutely hate people vomiting around me," Jennifer said as she cringed. _Please don't let me get sick._ "Well, to be on the safe side, we'll have to isolate them and Gunny, too, at least for a little while. Can you open some isolation suites?"

"I'll get that started, Doctor," Marie said as she left them alone.

"Thanks," Jennifer called back to her.

"I'll let you know what we find out as soon as I get the chance and don't get sick before Elizabeth's surprise party tonight," Rodney said and he reached out to touch her arm briefly before he left.

Disappointment at the lack of a kiss, mixed with excitement at spending the evening with Rodney at Elizabeth's birthday party filled the young doctor as she set off to deal with the sick soldiers. _Life has sure gotten interesting around here lately._

* * *

After hearing Elizabeth's story of the destruction of Atlantis and her time travel back ten thousand years, Rodney's first thought was to find Jennifer. The fact that he allowed her to die in another universe shook him to the core. A need like the one he felt after he almost died tugged him to the infirmary in the hopes of finding her still awake.

"You're so cute," Jennifer's voice was high pitched and did not sound normal to Rodney as he approached her office. "I can't get enough of those big brown eyes. They are the most beautiful brown eyes I've ever seen."

He stopped outside her office and listened to her talking to… _Who? Brown eyes? Peter_ _Grodin!_ Rodney's anger was at maximum before he stepped into Jennifer's office. _If he's seducing her, I'll…_

The scene before his eyes was not Jennifer gushing over Peter Grodin. No, it was _much_ worse, Jennifer holding a small baby in her arms. The tightening in Rodney's chest forced him to reach out and hold the door frame. Jennifer's hair was out of its usual ponytail and hung past her shoulders. A tiny hand was grabbing the long locks and a grin immediately spread over Rodney's face.

"I know your mommy says you are beautiful and all mommies have a history of thinking their babies are the cutest, but I'm here to tell you that your mommy is right. You are the _cutest_ baby," Jennifer continued to coo as she moved with a bouncing motion around her office. She would pause in front of her computer to look at something and then glance at the bundle wrapped in a light blue blanket in her arms.

"I bet you were a cute baby," Rodney said and was surprised to hear the words leave his mouth. _What are you doing? You are not going in there with Jennifer looking like that._

"Rodney! You scared me," Jennifer said after jumping at the sound of his voice. The baby in her arms let out a small cry.

"Sorry," Rodney said as he paused after entering the office.

"Lorianna, do you want to meet the smartest man ever?" Jennifer said with a huge smile as she looked at the baby and then turned that same grin onto Rodney.

He felt his knees give slightly and the stupid grin on his face to broaden as Jennifer walked over to him bouncing the newest Athosian in her arms. For a brief moment, he imagined he had just returned home from a long day to find his wife and daughter waiting for him. _Okay, McKay, definitely not enough food or sleep lately._

"Don't be afraid of Doctor McKay. No matter what anyone says to you, he's a big lovable teddy bear underneath all his bluster," Jennifer continued in that singsong voice all women had around infants. It was a sound that used to grate on Rodney's nerves, but coming from Jennifer, it was like music.

The physician and the baby stopped directly in front of the physicist and his eyes glanced from the beautiful face of the woman he could not stop thinking about to the tiny infant in her arms and was shocked to see the baby staring at him with huge brown eyes. "She does have beautiful eyes."

Rodney could not believe he said those words, either. Feeling like he stepped into an alternate universe, he looked once again at Jennifer to see her with a different smile on her face. It was a knowing look that she usually got when she caught him trying to hide something.

"What?" he said clearing his throat from the sudden dryness in his mouth.

"You are so busted, McKay," Jennifer said as she moved even closer so her shoulder brushed against his arm. "I know you are dying to hold this baby."

"No. No. No. I don't hold babies. I drop babies. I dropped my sister several times," Rodney sputtered as he put up his hands to fend off the baby and the beautiful woman holding her.

"She likes you," Jennifer said. "See, she can't stop staring into those beautiful blue eyes of yours."

Rodney felt his jaw drop as Jennifer's statement registered. _Beautiful blue eyes. Can guys have beautiful eyes?_

A cough interrupted his thoughts as he and Jennifer turned to find Major John Sheppard standing in the doorway. "Sorry to interrupt this _domestic_ scene, but Carson says Doctor Weir does not have long, so we should stay close to hear what else she might say."

"What did she say already?" Jennifer asked John as he walked over to her smiling at the baby.

"I just love babies," John said as he reached out to touch Lorianna's tiny hand.

"Of course you do," Jennifer said causing Rodney to feel a different type of jealousy. "All immature boys love babies. It makes them seem more grown up."

Rodney could not hide his laughter. "She is closer to your mental age, now that I think about it."

"You're just jealous because she's smiling at me and not you," John said as he stroked the baby's cheek with a finger.

"See Lorianna, you have men fighting over you already," Jennifer said. "You are a lucky little girl because these are two of the bravest, _nicest_ men you'll ever meet. Next to your Uncle Kanaan of course."

"You are obviously coming down with whatever bug hit Stackhouse's team and it's making you delusional," John said with a grin.

Rodney groaned. "Don't you have something better to do? You could have called me on the radio, you know."

John's eyebrows shot up his forehead as he faced his teammate. "I wanted to check on my men. Doctor Cole said you were here, so I figured I'd do two things at once."

"Stackhouse and the others are in bad shape. They will be out of commission at least a week," Jennifer said.

"So, I guess no more eating the local cuisine when off world, huh?" John said as he continued to smile at the baby, who was now grabbing at his finger. "You are a pretty little lady."

"She's very smart," Rodney said causing Jennifer to glance at him. "She's making direct eye contact. That's a sign of being really smart."

John stood up straight, glanced at Jennifer, who looked like she was trying not to laugh, and he said, "Is that so? Who knew we had Doctor Spock, the science officer, and Doctor Spock, the baby doctor on Atlantis?"

Jennifer could not control her laughter as Rodney shook his head and groaned. "Funny Sheppard. Really funny."

"John," Jennifer said after she calmed down. "You never told me what happened to us in the other timeline."

Rodney looked at John, who looked back with a look of concern, and then the physicist addressed Jennifer. "We all died."

"Yes, some of us heroically," John said.

"And the others?" Jennifer asked.

Rodney saw the color drain from her cheeks. _Dammit, Sheppard, why did you have to come here and ruin a brief moment of peace?_ "It doesn't matter how we died. We died and Elizabeth traveled back in time ten thousand years," he said trying to get Jennifer's natural curiosity satisfied with a short answer.

"So, time travel is possible? I guess I know what you'll be doing for the rest of your life," Jennifer said with that _knowing_ smile once again.

"We don't have a flux capacitor, so we're screwed," John said. "Hey, Rodney, we really need to go. Carson is serious about there not being much time left."

"Go on. If I get a chance, I'll join you. I can't imagine Elizabeth watching herself die. It's too weird to even be able to imagine," Jennifer said as the baby shifted in her arms and began to cry.

"Uh-oh, what's wrong?" Rodney asked as the baby started to increase the volume of her wailing.

"I can't feed her, that's what's wrong," Jennifer said laughing. "Better get her back to Mom."

"Uh… Ah… Okay… S-see you later." Rodney felt his face grow red as the thought of Jennifer's breasts popped into his mind. _Get a grip, McKay._ His eyes caught Sheppard's, which were full of laughter, and quickly looked back to Jennifer.

"Let Elizabeth know I'm thinking of her and will be there as soon as things quiet down here," Jennifer said louder to be heard about the now-screaming baby. "I better go."

"Don't you dare get any ideas, McKay. I need you focused on saving our asses, not making babies," Sheppard said and Rodney felt his CO slap him, hard, on the shoulder as they left the infirmary. Before he could reply, John rounded the corner to the isolation labs._

* * *

_Later that night, Jennifer finally got away from the baby and the sick soldiers long enough to check in on the ten thousand year old Elizabeth Weir. The stories of how everyone died had made the way around the base and Jennifer fought back tears at the thought of all of them drowning since she heard about it.

"Hello," Jennifer said tentatively to the old woman on the bed. Looking around, she noticed Rodney and Carson sleeping on beds and John sleeping in a chair. Elizabeth sat next to her older self. "You probably don't remember me. We didn't interact much in Antarctica…"

"Jennifer Keller," the older Elizabeth said.

"You create a lasting impression," the younger Elizabeth said with a big smile.

"I guess so, ten thousand years, is a long time to remember little old me." Jennifer smiled as she stepped closer and looked at the monitors, which showed the rapid shutdown of a human body. A wave of sadness came over the physician as she looked at the Elizabeth she knew. _What must it be like to watch yourself die? Is it like waiting for your own death?_

"You were one of the youngest of the expedition," the elder Doctor Weir said slowly, "and you did not want to go with us until Rodney and Carson dragged you along."

"I hope you didn't spend ten thousand years worrying about killing _me_?" Jennifer asked with raised eyebrows.

Both Elizabeths laughed, with the younger one saying, "Doctor Keller is good at lightening the most serious of situations. We would not survive without her sense of humor."

Jennifer was truly surprised and felt a blush come over her cheeks. "Thank you, Doctor Weir."

"I am glad my efforts allowed you to live a bit longer, Jennifer," the elder Weir said with a smile.

"Me too. I've never once regretted coming, though. My experiences have been beyond my wildest dreams," Jennifer said as she thought of the _family_ she found in this galaxy. "But, how did you _survive_ ten thousand years? I know you woke up a few times." The emptiness and loneliness was unimaginable to Jennifer. "How do you live in _captivity_, basically, without losing your mind?"

"You discover a strength you did not know you had," Elizabeth said. "Or you suspected you had, but never used before."

"I could _never_ survive something like that. I'd absolutely lose my mind," Jennifer said. "You are brave… beyond words." The young physician felt a shudder at the thought of being cut off from her family, friends and the life she now knew. _With no hope of returning home or someone looking for you, I just couldn't do it._

"You gave up your entire life," Elizabeth said as she touched the hand of her older self.

"No, because we are the same person. The best part of my life, it's just beginning. I'm exploring a new galaxy. I have years ahead of me still." The elder Elizabeth reached out to touch Elizabeth's cheek. "Trust yourself, Elizabeth. All that matters is right now. And the note, I wrote it in case I didn't survive. Has Rodney figured it out yet?"

"What note?" Jennifer asked looking at Elizabeth, who sat next to her.

"Five Gate addresses?" Elizabeth asked shaking her head.

"Gate addresses?" Jennifer echoed. _What if they're…_

"Outposts: each one with a Zero Point Module. Janis told me," the elder Weir said.

Jennifer ran to Rodney's bed and grabbed his shoulder, shaking him. "Rodney! Rodney!"

"Wha… Jennifer, what are you doing here?" Rodney asked as he sleepily sat up reaching out to touch her arm.

"The note from Doctor Weir contains coordinates of planets that have known ZPM's." Jennifer could not hide the happiness in her voice or her excitement, especially when Rodney's eyes lit up.

He hopped off the bed and fumbled with the note, bringing it out of his pocket. John and Carson had been awoken by Jennifer's excited voice and came over.

"They could still be there." The Major took the note from Rodney, who looked over John's shoulder.

"M7G-677's on here! I mean this is amazing! We've got…" Rodney's voice trailed off as the sound of a heart monitor flat lining filled the room and caused the two physicians to turn. Since Carson was closest, he walked over to Elizabeth, who gently took the hand of her older self, and put his hand on her shoulder in comfort. Jennifer glanced at Rodney and John; she motioned for them to leave the room.

* * *

Once in the corridor, the excitement returned. "Five outposts! Another one of them must still have a ZPM," Jennifer said with a grin.

Rodney could not contain his excitement either. "I need to run these addresses. I have to admit I forgot about this."

"Yes, caught up with your own heroic demise, I assume," John said.

"Please don't bring that up. When I heard we all drown…" Jennifer shuddered and closed her eyes. A warm hand rested on her shoulder causing her to look up into bright blue eyes.

"We can't get concerned about other times or other universes, okay?" Rodney said with a look of compassion that was seldom on his face.

"I'm beginning to think I'm in another universe if you're going to continue to be _nice_ to people," John said causing Rodney to glare at his team leader.

"I'm always nice to Jennifer," he snapped back and then removed his hand. "I do need to get up to the database with these addresses."

"Be ready for a briefing in two hours. Is that enough time?" John said as he checked his watch.

"Sure. I'm on it," Rodney said with a smile as he turned to jog down the corridor.

"Still think he doesn't _like_ you?" John asked Jennifer with a smirk as he turned and left.

A smile spread over Jennifer's lips for a moment as she imagined an Atlantis in contact with Earth and Rodney having time to pursue a relationship with her. _It's no longer such an unrealistic fantasy._

**

* * *

A/N: ****Now the _Siege_ saga begins. I honestly cannot believe the end of Season One is approaching. I can't thank everyone enough for their support.  
**


	24. The Brotherhood

**A/N: First scene is a little rewrite I had to put in based on Rodney's encounter. Thank you for all the wonderful reviews and for my Betas Scr1, dwparsnip and Betherdy Babe. And thanks to **_**Dr (Mr) DaniWilder**_** for his assistance with the biology conversation between Carson and Jennifer.  
**

* * *

Rodney had been speaking with Alina, but excused himself because he was exhausted and headed past Sheppard, Ford and Teyla to go to his room. "I'm heading to bed."

"And which bed might that be?" Ford asked with a laugh.

"Hmm… What are you talking about?" he asked Ford.

"I think their leader might have a little crush on you…" Ford continued to laugh as he held his fingers apart to demonstrate.

"She does?" Rodney asked.

"It is very clear to us all," Teyla said also smiling.

"It is?" Rodney was still not certain, so he looked over at Alina and she smiled back at him sweetly. _Wow, I didn't notice that._

"To everyone but you, apparently," John said as he took a bite of fruit. His eyebrows were cocked and he was looking critically at Rodney.

"I'd say it's a _sure thing_, Doc," Ford said with a sly smile. "Been a long time since I've had a sure thing."

"What is a _sure thing_?" Teyla asked.

"Not important, Teyla," John said shooting Ford a questioning gaze.

"Well, that's nice… I guess. Listen, I'm exhausted and I need to get some sleep," Rodney said and left.

_Alina is beautiful and obviously willing if even Ford and Teyla can see it, but…_ In the past he never would pass up a _sure thing,_ but now he had zero interest in comfort from _any_ woman who was not a genius physician with brown eyes and long golden hair. A silly grin spread over his face as he headed to bed with thoughts of the young doctor lying in his bed and his arms. _How did Jennifer get such a hold over me?_

* * *

"Is he gay?" Aiden asked as John shot him a glare after Rodney left.

"No, and are you fifteen or something? He's got someone else on his mind and I'd say it's pretty serious if he's not even looking twice at a willing woman," John said with a smile. _McKay must care a lot about Jennifer or the two of them are more intimate that I thought they were._

"And who _might_ that be?" Teyla asked with a big smile.

_Looks like I've taught her about sarcasm_, John thought as he chuckled.

"I can't think of any woman who'd be _interested_ in McKay besides some nerdy chick in his department, so I hope he's not aiming too high," Ford said.

"Nerdy chick? Seriously, how old are you, Ford?" John said with a laugh.

"I bet its Doctor Weir," Aiden grinned.

"You really need to work on your observational skills, Lieutenant. I'm sending you to ghost Gunnery Sergeant Richards for a week, so you can learn something about observing others." John shook his head.

"Yes, Aiden," Teyla added. "It is _very_ obvious who Rodney is interested in."

"Well not to me," Ford continued, with arms crossed and a defensive posture.

"Who does Rodney spend all his time with?" John asked. "His _free_ time."

Aiden paused a moment and then began to laugh. "Oh wow. He better get in line because it's gonna be a long wait for her to notice him."

John shook his head at how clueless Ford really was about their teammate and the young doctor.

* * *

After enjoying their first lunch together in weeks, Jennifer stared at Carson's monitor, impressed at how much thought and time Carson spent researching the Wraith, yet mildly disturbed with his research proposal. "Let me get this straight," Jennifer clarified as her mentor looked expectantly at her. "You want to insert non-coding DNA pieces into the genes of a Wraith via a retrovirus to interfere with transcription and expression of the genes that make it… a _Wraith_?"

"That's right, it appears the genes that make a Wraith different from humans are self-contained in a different chromosome. Without it, they are extremely similar _physiologically_ to us. It seems like Wraith are a combination of humans and some other creature," Carson said. "I'm thinking that bug creature that Sheppard ran into."

"Carson what happens if you strip the Wraith genes? You're going to have a human _Wraith_ on your hands. What will you do with it?" Jennifer was surprised to hear Carson talk about _genetically_ wiping out a species. As much as the Wraith terrified her, the total annihilation of any living creature via a biological means scared her more than the creatures themselves.

"Jennifer, they would be human. No more feeding. No more cullings and driving humans insane," Carson said grinning broadly. "We can prevent more death."

"Carson, Wraith are basically like any big predator on Earth; lions, tigers, great white sharks. You are proposing turning them into puppies and dolphins, _physiologically_. They will still be Wraith, though." Jennifer had a feeling Carson did not get the moral issues she tried to raise. _I can't believe Carson is thinking about this. How could he want to destroy life even if it's terrifying? The Wraith did what they did because they had to._

"They are not lions and tigers," Carson snapped. "They are savage, evil creatures that destroy human populations and drive them into hiding or force them to sacrifice half their society just so the other half may live." His voice raised and he was yelling at her by the end.

_Hoff! Of course!_ Jennifer knew deep down that Carson blamed himself. "Carson, the Hoffan people could have figured out the virus without us." Jennifer rubbed his arm and tried to smile. "Perna was a brilliant scientist and was very close to unlocking it when you got there. You cannot blame yourself. Besides, you did not inoculate everyone immediately without further testing. They chose their fate." "

At the mention of the woman's name, Carson cracked. Tears rolled out of his blue eyes and he began to shake. Jumping quickly out of her chair to hug Carson, who was still seated, Jennifer said, "I'm sorry Carson. I'm really sorry."

"I loved her Jennifer," Carson choked out. "I know you'd never believe in love at first sight, but I do."

"Of course I believe in love at first sight. Why would you say I wouldn't?" Jennifer was confused by Carson's statement, but the image of a certain astrophysicist in an orange fleece made her lips turn up slightly.

"You're far too… too pragmatic to be a hopeless romantic like me," Carson said, as he got control of his emotions.

"Pragmatic? You sure know how to compliment a girl, Carson," Jennifer said with annoyance in her voice.

Before she could grill Carson on why he did not think she could be romantic, the PA system broadcasted Chuck's voice. "All non-essential personnel please report to your quarters or a secure location. Essential personnel report to your designated area. This is not a drill."

"What!" Jennifer and Carson said simultaneously as they stood.

"Listen, I need Stackhouse in a jumper right away!" Bates yelled as he suddenly appeared in the doorway with a sickly looking Sergeant Stackhouse behind him.

"What?" Jennifer said looking at the angry face of the head of security.

"I need you to approve Sergeant Stackhouse for flight immediately," Sergeant Bates said.

"Sergeant Stackhouse is on restricted duty. He can't fly a jumper he's too weak," Jennifer said. "What's going on?"

"There is a Wraith dart in route and it will be here in less than twenty minutes. With the Major gone and out of radio contact, I'm short a pilot if Stackhouse can't fly," Bates snapped. "I need to get three jumpers in the air to mount the best defense we can."

"Doctor Keller, I feel better and I _have_ to do this," Tommy said with a pleading look in his eyes.

"Tommy, you won't have your reflexes, you can't go up there alone," Jennifer said understanding what was at stake, but needing to put her patient first. _No one will respect me as a doctor if I sacrifice that principle._

"I need…." Bates snapped angrily only to be cut off by Carson.

"I-I can barely make it to the main land and back without crashing. I'm not a fighter pilot, but if you have to have three jumpers up there, I'll go with Stackhouse," Carson said reluctantly glancing between Bates and Stackhouse.

"Thanks, Doctor Beckett," Tommy said. "I'll be right beside you so we'll do fine."

"Carson, what are you doing? You can't…" Fear gripped Jennifer and she felt like she was going to be sick.

"I'll take care of him, Doctor Keller, I promise," Tommy said as he reached out to squeeze her arm.

"Carson…" Jennifer grabbed onto his arm. She knew why he was doing this, but the thought of her kind and sweet friend facing a Wraith dart in a dogfight terrified her more than anything since she thought Rodney had died.

"Jennifer," Carson said, his face set with eyes that were recently full of tears looking resolute. "You know I have to go."

Nodding, Jennifer walked along with the soldiers and her mentor. Slipping her arm around his waist, she said, "Stay behind Markham. He's the best next to Sheppard. Miller will be the other pilot. He's a scientist in Rodney's group, but he was an Air Force pilot and flew in Iraq and Afghanistan. Listen to Stackhouse and you'll be fine," the physician said hugging Carson while they walked. _Please keep them safe._

* * *

In the control room twenty minutes later, Jennifer stood near the back trying to stay out of the way. On the way to the tower, they ran into Gunnery Sergeant Richards and some Marines carrying rocket launchers and large machine guns. They were going to set up on a few balconies of the central tower as added protection if the dart made it past the jumpers. Knowing the Richards was involved in the defense, made Jennifer feel a little more secure.

As usual, Gunny seemed to know Jennifer needed something to do, so he suggested she come to the control room and stand by with the emergency medical equipment. Then she would be available if anything happened in the jumper bay or to the men on the balconies.

"Gentlemen you should have visual in thirty seconds," Radek said. Elizabeth stood behind Radek, who sat at the main monitoring station, with Bates, Chuck Campbell, Jimmy Tung and Peter Grodin in the control room.

"Are you ready?" Bates asked the men in the jumpers.

"As ready as I can be," Carson said.

"You're gonna do fine," Stackhouse said calmly.

"Is fine going to be good enough?" Carson replied sounding less than confident.

A new blip appeared on the monitor heading toward the three jumpers very quickly.

"Its coming right at you," Radek said as he saw the dart approaching the city, causing Jennifer to start.

Suddenly, one blip disappeared and the dot representing the Wraith dart went around the remaining two. _Someone's been destroyed_, Jennifer's heart stopped.

"Atlantis," the broken voice of Tommy Stackhouse came over the radio, "Markham and Smith have been taken out."

"No," Jennifer said. She felt joy that Tommy and Carson were safe, but it was tempered with sorrow as the youthful face of Sergeant Markham and the easy Texas drawl of Adam Smith immediately came to her mind. Peter Grodin came over to put a hand on her shoulder. Hating that she cried when anyone died, but unable to stop herself, Jennifer closed her eyes and listened with trepidation to the radio chatter.

"Shoot it down!" Bates shouted as everyone in the control room watched the large monitor of the city to see three dots moving through the towers.

"It's right in the middle of the city. I don't have a clean shot," Carson yelled back over the radio.

The screen showed some type of interference coming out of the Wraith's dot on the monitor. "What's it doing?" Elizabeth asked.

"It's scanning us," Radek said as Peter and Jennifer looked at him.

"It's headed for the central tower," Carson's voice said over the radio.

Jennifer turned to look out on the balcony and heard a blast as Richards shot a rocket at the dart as it zipped past and then flew up into the sky.

"Hold Tight! One. More. Second," Carson said over the radio before the dart disappeared on the monitor, causing everyone to release a collective sigh.

"Yes!" Bates shouted with his fist pumping in the air. "Who got it Gunny or the jumpers?"

"We didn't do that. At least I don't think we did," Carson said and Tommy could be heard mumbling _no_. Miller reported that they did not get off a shot either.

Richards, Warrington and Carter came in from the balcony and Gunny shook his head. "No, it self-destructed."

"Jumpers return to the city," Elizabeth said wearily. Her eyes connected with Jennifer's for a second and the physician saw sorrow on their leader's face.

Jennifer swiped at the tears on her face as he looked at Richards and again saw a pain that could never be released. _I guess I should cry since no one else can._

"Why?" Doctor Weir asked to a silent room. She looked from Bates to Richards raising her eyebrows.

"I don't think it came here to fight, ma'am. It didn't seem that interested in the jumpers except when they blocked its way to the city," Gunny explained.

"Darts are not long-range fighters. The fact it came so far alone…it had to be a scout," Radek said.

"Scout?" Jennifer did not want to let the thoughts racing through her head to come to the surface because a scout meant _someone_ was following behind it.

"But why would it self-destruct? Scouts are meant to relay information," Weir said.

"But it did relay information. Look," Radek pulled his laptop over and loaded a new image on the large monitor. Jennifer and Peter moved near Gunny and Doctor Weir to see what the Czech found. "Just before… it exploded. The dart was transmitting data."

"I don't suppose you could…" Elizabeth started.

"Not any time soon at least," Radek said. "But I could direct long range sensors to the area it seemed to be going. See what shows up. Give me a few minutes."

* * *

Carson and the soldiers came down the stairs from the jumper bay. Jennifer once again forgot that she was the second in command of the infirmary, and raced over to hug her friend. A weary Carson Beckett held on longer and tighter than he normally would have, but the two doctors were terrified at what had just occurred and gained strength from their love and friendship.

"Incoming wormhole," Chuck said as the gate began to dial. "Reading Lieutenant Ford's IDC."

"Finally," Elizabeth said under her breath as she walked to the balcony looking into the Gateroom.

SGA-1 came through the worm hole looking weary. Rodney and Ford were obviously fighting about something as Elizabeth shouted, "Did you get the ZPM?"

"No," Sheppard called up to her. "It's a long story."

"Well, we could've used it," Elizabeth said.

"Of course we could of," John said as he entered the control room and saw Carson, Jennifer and the others standing there. "Did we get back for the party?"

"No you don't understand. While you were off world a wraith dart just flew over our city," Elizabeth explained walking toward the monitor.

Teyla, Ford and Rodney entered the control room behind John. Rodney immediately looked at Jennifer with her arm around Carson and raised his eyebrows.

"I'm sorry," Sheppard said and the rest of his team looked at Elizabeth.

"We lost a jumper along with Markham and Smith," Weir said.

"We what?" John said looking shocked.

"And it scanned us," Elizabeth said.

"We just lost two of my men and a jumper and this is the first time I'm hearing about it?" John said angrily.

"I tried to reach you but you've been out of radio contact for over twelve hours. Now the dart sent a message deep into space and then it self destructed before we could get to it," Elizabeth explained.

"I'm scanning the area with our deep space sensors and…" Radek started.

"We have deep space sensors?" Rodney asked looking shocked like Sheppard.

"Yeah. It's a long story," Radek said. "The scanners haven't… Oh no!"

"Radek," Jennifer called out to the Czech as suddenly tapped at the laptop in front of him and turned to the large monitor, which now showed three large dots.

"What are those?" Rodney asked stepping closer to Jennifer.

"Wraith hive ships. Three of them. The system analysis shows that…" Radek said softly.

"Where are they headed?" John asked but everyone in the room knew the answer.

Tapping again on his laptop, Radek looked at the Major and said, "If they maintain direction and speed, they'll be over our planet within two weeks."

Silence filled the control room. Swallowing Jennifer moved closer to Rodney so their arms were brushing and looked up to see fear reflected back in the physicist's eyes.

**TBC**

**

* * *

A/N: I know I changed things but there was no reason I could find why the head of security was in a jumper with Carson other than the actor was due more screen time. Sorry to Bates lovers.**


	25. Letters Part 1

**MGM owns all characters except OC's.**

**Thanks scr1 and Betherdy Babe. Some dialogue from GateWorld.**

**A/N: Sorry for the long break, but work and holidays took their toll. This starts right where last chapter left off.**

* * *

Jennifer stared up into Rodney's eyes and noticed they were red, very red and there was white powder in his hair and on his clothing. Turning to face him fully, she asked, "Rodney, are you okay? Your eyes look… _funny_. Did you have a reaction to something?"

"Yeah, flash bang grenades," he said glaring at Sheppard, who was still silently staring at the monitor showing three hive ships on their way to Atlantis.

"Flash bangs?" Jennifer's mind quickly went through the chemical composition and her eyes widened. "I don't suppose you flushed your eyes out?"

"With the Genii and the betrayal by the Daganians, no, I didn't have time," Rodney snapped.

"Genii?" Gunny said questioningly.

"Yeah, our old friend, Kolya…" Rodney started as he tried to swipe at his eyes with his shirt.

"No!" Jennifer yelled grabbing his arm and making everyone stare at them. "There's powder all over your clothing. I need all of you in the infirmary right now to get checked out."

"We're a little busy right now," John snapped obviously annoyed with Rodney's comment about the Genii and the discovery of the Hive ships.

"Well, if you want to _see_ the Wraith when they get here in two weeks, you better let us look at your eyes," she yelled at him.

"We need to debrief," John said as he looked at Elizabeth.

"That's easy, sir," Ford said angrily. "McKay wouldn't take one for the team, so we lost the ZPM."

"Oh, will you stop with that shit, Ford!" Rodney yelled.

"Take one for the team?" Elizabeth questioned.

"Ford…" Sheppard started.

"The leader was _interested_ in McKay. If he _returned_ her interest we'd probably still have the ZPM," Ford said.

"Oh will you…" Rodney started.

"Enough!" John shouted. "We are not talking about it again. The ZPM is gone!"

"We don't have time for this. Get to the infirmary, now!" Jennifer yelled pointing toward the staircase. The angry young woman was not waiting for a response and pulled Rodney behind her as she left.

The physicist fell in step beside her as they headed to the infirmary. "Do you… I mean could my eyes…"

"I'm sure you'll be fine, but we can't take any risks," Jennifer said thankful to have something to focus on besides the sense of impending doom brought on by Radek's discovery. The feel of Rodney's arm under her hand made her feel better, the warmth of his skin and the feel of his pulse under her fingertips helped to calm her racing heart. _Carson almost died. I don't know how much of this I can take._

"It was in a confined space, though," Rodney continued with an edge to his voice. "That always makes these exposures worse, right? I also have some ringing in my ears. I…"

"Rodney, don't get yourself too upset until I get to scan you," the physician said smiling at her patient. "I'm sorry if I scared you, but John seldom listens when I tell him to do something related to his health."

The physicist seemed to calm down when she smiled at him, so she squeezed his arm tighter. Suddenly, the loneliness of the last several days came back to her._ I missed him. Even though we are facing an uncertain future, I feel better just because he's here._ Her smile widened into a grin that reached her eyes as she tried to convey her feelings with just her face.

Rodney must have gotten it because he smiled at her as well. "We'll be okay, you know.

We won't die here."

"I know," Jennifer said. _There are too many smart people here for us to just get killed by Wraith. _"I don't think we're going to die, I just… Well…" They reached the infirmary, so Jennifer had to stop talking to Rodney.

She organized the staff including Carson to get scrubs for SGA1 to change into since their uniforms were covered in aluminum and potassium perchlorate dust from the grenades and settled the rest of Rodney's team into exam rooms. She then turned her attention back to her patient; Rodney had showered in the back of the infirmary and was now dressed in white infirmary scrubs. The physician got towels and ran the eyewash station for a while to make sure the water to flush his eyes was not too cold.

"Do you really have to do that?" Rodney asked.

"Yes, now come here and sit down," Jennifer motioned to a chair set against the sink. "I'll need you to lean your head over the sink, so I can run the water in your eyes."

Rodney settled down after grumbling a bit more. Jennifer had to press against him to lean over the sink and run the water in his eyes. Her body brushing against Rodney's caused her to lose her focus as the desire to be in his arms came suddenly, sending a tremor through her. Glancing down, she could not see if Rodney was affected by her closeness because she was spraying water over his eyes and he was holding onto the sink to keep steady.

* * *

"Rodney?" Jennifer asked, "What was Ford talking about?"

Rodney groaned and mumbled, "Ford?"

"Yes, Ford. What was his comment about the woman _liking_ you all about?" Jennifer shifted around to the other side to flush out Rodney's right eye.

"Alina was interested in me until she found out I wasn't really from Atlantis. I guess," Rodney explained. He was having a horrible time concentrating on anything, but the water pouring over his eyes and the feel of Jennifer's soft body pressed close to his shoulders and chest, while she rinsed his eyes. It took all his energy, which was not much after the last day, to keep from groaning and pulling her onto his lap and kissing her senseless. _Something I haven't been able to do since that night in my quarters._

"Alina?"

"She was the… leader." Rodney shifted next to Jennifer as her breast brushed against his bare forearm. "J-jen…Ah… I," Rodney sputtered and coughed as he pushed Jennifer away. The water, which she was suddenly spraying all over his upper body made him cold and more than a little annoyed. "What are you doing!"

Jennifer looked at Rodney innocently. "Oh, I'm sorry. I got lost in thought for a minute." She turned off the water and grabbed a towel, which she handed to the wet man before her.

* * *

A feeling that she seldom felt before flashed through her. _Some woman wanted to sleep with Rodney? _"Was she beautiful?" An image of a beautiful seductive woman slinking around Rodney as they hunted for artifacts went through Jennifer's mind. Anger at this unknown woman flowed through the physician as she gripped the handle of the water sprayer tighter and accidentally sprayed more than Rodney's eyes.

"What! Was who beautiful?" Rodney asked as he yanked a towel from her.

"Alina," Jennifer said spitting out the word slowly as her breathes became deeper and louder. Her entire body tensed and she knew if this faceless woman appeared, she would slug her.

Rodney stopped drying off and suddenly looked at her with a broad grin.

"What _are_ you smiling about?" Jennifer snapped.

"Why if I didn't know you any better, Doctor Keller, I'd think you were jealous." Rodney's eyebrows wiggled and his lips curled into a wry grin.

"What? Don't… don't be ri-ridiculous," Jennifer felt her face getting red as she stammered.

"_Was she beautiful?_ That is a jealous person's question," Rodney said shaking his head with his arrogant _I'm right and you're wrong_ smirk.

"No, I was only asking because your team always runs into beautiful women, Teyla, Perna and, we can't forget Chaya."

"Oh, but you forgot Sora," Rodney said. "Even though she was trying to kill us, she was hot."

Jennifer opened her mouth to speak and raised her hand to scold him, so Rodney backed away suddenly looking fearful.

"Hey, hey! We can't fight with each other now." John's voice broke through Jennifer's anger.

_Rodney is making fun of me. I like him, he knows it and he's picking on me._ "I am not fighting." _Now I sound like I'm twelve._

"Now, don't make me come over there," the Major chuckled.

Jennifer looked over to see John and Richards enter the infirmary. _First I cry and now I get jealous. I just can't win._

"What was this about Kolya?" Jennifer asked Sheppard immediately to redirect the conversation from her red face and Rodney's wet clothing. _The last thing we need is them again. And Kolya, too._ Jennifer felt a shudder pass through her at the thought of that man's dead eyes. "Did you kill him?"

John's eyebrows shot up his head at Jennifer's question. "Not a nice question from someone who vowed to save lives."

"Doesn't mean I have to _want_ to," Jennifer shot back, very glad the conversation was moving on.

"No. I left him in a hole. I figured he'll owe us one," Sheppard said.

Jennifer's eyes caught Gunny and saw a look briefly cross his face. "You don't think that was wise, Gunny?"

Sheppard and McKay, who was still drying off, both turned to the veteran soldier. John asked, "You think I should have killed him?"

"Yes sir," Gunny spoke without a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Showing mercy is a bad thing?" John questioned.

"To a man like Kolya? Yes, sir, it is," Gunny replied standing at attention while addressing his commanding officer.

"How are you such an expert on a creep like that?" Rodney asked as he toweled off his hair only to have John glare at him. "What?"

"I speak from experience, Doctor McKay," Richards said in his calm voice. "He _will_ view this as an insult, an affront to his character as a viscous killer. The next time we meet him, he'll be more savage than the last time. There's only one thing a man like that deserves... No, make that two things, a double tap to the head."

Rodney and Jennifer stood in silence after Sheppard and Richards left. The briefing would be held in two hours according to John and would involve the extended staff to discuss the plan of action. Both of them had things to prepare, especially Jennifer, who would have a role in the evacuation like the last time to Manara.

Looking at Rodney and noticing the scar still visible on his arm, she stepped closer to him. "Did he... he threaten you again?" The pain in her heart caused a lump to form in her throat and tears in her eyes. _ I wish Gunny did kill Kolya on Manara_.

"No. Well, yes, but no knives this time. Only threatened to shoot me, which is quicker I guess," Rodney said with a smile. His eyes held onto hers and he touched her arm.

Jennifer stared into those perfect blue eyes, whose image was ingrained into her mind and helped her to fall asleep each night. The thought that they could be extinguished and almost were so many times already caused a wave of sadness to envelope her.

"We won't die here. I mean it," Rodney said squeezing her upper arm gently thinking their impending doom saddened her.

"I know. I don't know how much time we'll have to talk in the next two weeks, but I don't want you and Carson to feel bad about coming after me and bringing me here. This has been the most amazing adventure of my life and I would never trade it just to get a third PhD," Jennifer said, suddenly grabbing Rodney's arm in return and squeezing. "I only wish I could tell my dad that I'm glad I came. I think he'll feel guilty that he had a hand in sending me to my death."

"Jennifer..." Rodney stopped speaking and suddenly snapped his fingers as his eyes widened and a boyish grin broke his serious face. "You're a genius!"

"I know," she tried to copy his attitude and tone. It was obvious something she said sparked his genius mind and he was going to run off and save the day. _At least I hope._

Rodney's sudden kiss to her lips shocked her out of her thoughts because it happened and ended so fast, she could do nothing, but deal with the aftermath. "See you in two hours. You are an absolute genius."

With that the physicist hurried out of the infirmary in scrubs and still carrying the towel. Jennifer was left staring at his wake. They had kissed far more passionately and longer than the quick peck on the lips, but the fact that he kissed her where anyone could walk in and for no apparent reason except something she said sparked his thoughts meant the world to her. _He does really, truly like me. _The grin on her face would stay there at least until the senior meeting.

* * *

In the conference room, Elizabeth was trying to get everyone's attention. In attendance were SGA1, Grodin, Beckett, Keller, Bates, Richards, and Lieutenant Reed, from logistics. Doctor Keller was seated between Reed and Sergeant Bates because they would work on the evacuation with her.

Clearing her throat, Elizabeth started, "Well, we knew they were coming; at least now we know when."

"That's something," John said.

"That's something?" Rodney replied looking annoyed.

"It means there's still time, Rodney... there's no reason to panic...yet," the Major said without all his normal bravado.

"Where there is time, there is hope," Teyla added.

"Agreed. So, recommendations?" Elizabeth said looking around the room.

"Other than panic?" Carson asked trying to lighting the tense mood.

"Other than panic, yes," Elizabeth said nodding.

"I realize this might not be cool, but we should consider M7G-677," Ford said from John's left. He had avoided Jennifer's gaze since he entered the room.

"As a possible evacuation site?" Elizabeth asked.

Jennifer swallowed hard at that comment as she thought of facing Keras again. _Rodney was angry when I told him what happened. He won't let Keras try anything again, I'm sure._

"No, ma'am. I'm suggesting we take their Z.P.M," Aiden said.

"Their only means of protection from the Wraith? A planet populated mostly by children?" Elizabeth asked incredulously.

"For the record, they are not _all_ children," Rodney said with a bitter tone. "He raises a valid point, though. We've already established that their ZedPM is nearly depleted, but it could be of some limited use to us."

Jennifer tried to catch Rodney's eye. She knew he was thinking what she just did and once she caught his penetrating blue gaze, she raised an eyebrow. Rodney looked somewhat ashamed and looked back at Weir.

"You asked for suggestions. It's a matter of survival," Ford said not backing down from his suggestion.

"I see. Well, we're not quite there yet, and as long as I'm in charge, we will never be there," Weir said with force behind her words.

"I agree, Doctor Weir. If this is to be our end, it is best we face it with both dignity and honor," Teyla said looking annoyed at Ford.

"To that end, I actually have an idea, in addition to panic," Rodney said, looking smugly at them.

_This is it. Whatever I sparked in his brain._ Jennifer looked with anticipation at the other genius in the room.

"Let's hear it," John said.

"It's really a long shot, but I think it's, uh, most likely worth the effort. Of course, it will mostly be my effort, so..." Rodney was building to the big finish as usual.

"What is it? " John asked used to Rodney's ploy but annoyed after all this time nonetheless.

"I think we can send a message back to Earth through the Stargate," Rodney announced like he would announce the dinner menu.

Jennifer's eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat. His eyes caught hers for a second until he had to face everyone. _How could this be possible? Why wouldn't he have said something before?  
_  
"Excuse me!" Carson exclaimed.

"I thought we didn't have enough power?" Elizabeth asked.

"Not to send a person, no. We'd never be able to maintain the wormhole long enough. But I think if we were able to tie together all of our power-generating capabilities, we might... and I emphasize might... be able to establish a wormhole long enough to send a message," Rodney said.

_Of course,_ Jennifer could not help but smile slightly. _He is a genius._

"How much time are we talking about?" John asked.

"Well, approximately, uh, one point three seconds, give or take," Rodney said with his usual calm when delivering something he knew others would not fully understand.

"That's not much time," Carson stated.

"Time enough to say, _S.O.S._" Aiden said.

"Don't be so analogue!" Rodney snapped causing Jen to laugh. "One point three seconds is more than enough time to send a message if it's in the form of a high compression data burst. Now, I helped refine the encoding for the US Air Force a few years back. Colonel Carter should be able to, uh, decipher it on the other side."

"You're suggesting this now?" John was obviously pissed.

Jennifer wanted to jump in to Rodney's defense to tell them how dangerous this would be to the city. She read all his and Colonel Carter's papers on the Stargates and wormholes and knew the power would have to be enormous to open a gate between galaxies, even for one point three seconds.

"Because it probably won't work, and there's a very good chance it could overload our naqahdah generators in the process."

"Well, then, we can't take the risk! No power, we won't have a chance in hell!" John responded.

"There are three Wraith hive ships on the way, Major! Desperate times call for desperate measures. Besides, I spent the last couple hours working out ways of minimizing the risk." Rodney glared at John for obviously doubting him.

"Assuming it's possible, how much information could we send?" Elizabeth asked

"Everything. I mean, uh, mission reports from all the senior staff, uh, a ton of stuff on Atlantis, things we've learned in Pegasus..." Rodney paused. "We can put in our city specs, mission reports and tactical assessments, data that we've been able to decipher from the Ancient database..."

"All that, one second?" Ford questioned.

"One point three," Jennifer and Sheppard said at the same time.

"See, you jest, but if I can finesse the compression ratios, you'll be looking for things to add," Rodney said looking at Jennifer, trying to jog her mind with his eyes.

"Is it enough to include personal messages?" Jennifer asked as their conversation from earlier came back to her and the knowledge of all the movies, books, music and information he got on her laptop back in Chippewa Falls.

"Uh, sure... I mean, several hours of video. Much more if it was strictly audio," Rodney said to Jennifer, which elicited a big smile. "The algorithm I've devised is extraordinarily efficient."

"I think messages home would do wonders for morale, especially now," Elizabeth said smiling at Jennifer. "Excellent idea Doctor Keller and good work Rodney."

"Thank you," Rodney nodded to Elizabeth and looked very smug, "I have a lot of work to do...shouldn't I, uh ...?"

"Lieutenant Ford, maybe you'd like to handle this? Give everybody a few minutes on camera to send a personal message to their loved ones?" Elizabeth asked.

"I'd love to, ma'am," he replied.

"Good," Elizabeth said. "Now, for the rest of you, we need to discuss the evacuation."

"If I could offer a suggestion?" Jennifer said hesitantly looking at Elizabeth and John.

"Go ahead, Doctor Keller, you and Doctor Grodin will be in charge of the Alpha Site while we are on Atlantis," Elizabeth said so nonchalantly that Jennifer almost dove into her next comment without pausing.

"I... I will?" Jennifer's eyes opened wide and she paused.

"According to Doctor Grodin, you were basically in charge on Manara. I'll make it official now," Elizabeth said with a smile.

"Not sure Manara was a shining example of trusting me with an alpha site. I was going to say, I'll handle the set-up and evacuation, but leave the selection to others," she said quietly.

It was obviously impossible for Sheppard to not laugh at her comment, but he was trying by squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head. "I'll handle the final review of the alpha site, before Doctor Keller goes."

After Jennifer's comment, the meeting settled into a basic discussion of the evacuation and resettlement of Atlantis, everyone was given assigments and the meeting broke. Jennifer was still so stunned and frightened by what Elizabeth told her that she could not get up.

_What if I mess up and someone dies again? What if the Wraith come before we can get out of Atlantis?_The gentle hand of Rodney McKay pulled her from the frightened thoughts swirling in her head.

"Congratulations, but it's only until someone more senior gets there," he said with an arrogant look and slightly upturned lips.

"Hey," Jennifer swatted at him as she stood up.

Rodney quickly stepped back so she did not hit him. "You do an awful lot of that lately."

"Because you annoy me an awful lot lately," Jennifer replied with a smile. "But not right now. I can't thank you enough for trying this. I know we need to warn Earth about the Wraith and share our knowledge, but... well..." She wanted to say out loud that she thought he might have done this just for her, but her knowledge of relationships and guys was so non-existent that she did not want to assume.

"You're welcome and I did want you to feel better by getting a message home," he said with a smile as he stepped closer.

Jennifer looked into his eyes and stepped into him, placing her hands on his shoulders and leaning up to give him a kiss. It was going to be a quick one like he gave her earlier, but two arms quickly locked around her waist pulling her close and expert lips quickly gained entrance to her mouth. This kiss was as passionate as the one in Rodney's quarters and was only ended by a serious lack of oxygen between them both.

Pulling back at the same time, the two geniuses were breathing heavy and their faces were red as they seemed to realize they were in a conference room where anyone could walk in. As they stared into each others faces, Jennifer's earwig sounded.

Jennifer stepped out of Rodney's arms to answer. "Go ahead Sergeant Bates."

"Lieutenant Reed and I are in the security office when you get a chance to join us," he said sounding annoyed. _Probably because I didn't run after him. Although, Bates is always annoyed._

"I'll be there in a minute," she replied and turned to Rodney. "I need to go."

"Yeah, I have a ton to do with Zelenka," Rodney said as he took a few deep breaths and smoothed his shirt, which got wrinkled from Jennifer's hands pulling at the fabric during their kiss.

"So, are you sending a message to your sister?" Jennifer asked as they approached the doors, which opened for them automatically.

"What am I going to say to her? Hey, sorry I haven't spoken in three years, but I'm dead now, so don't expect to run into me," Rodney said.

"I'm sure you'll think of something and don't forget all your wisdom you have to share," Jennifer said smiling as she saw Gunnery Sergeant Richards standing at the end of the walkway outside the conference room to the control room. "Gunny."

"Doctor Keller, please tell everyone I'll be at the meeting in a few minutes. I need to discuss something with Doctor McKay," Richards said startling the astrophysicist.

"Sure thing, Gunny," Jennifer said with a smile and headed down the stairs.

* * *

After kissing Jennifer in the conference room Rodney was now facing the man, who told everyone on the base to stay away from the young doctor, and it scared him. The fact that the man could kill him with his pinky made Rodney want to run screaming, but he stood his ground.

"Sure," he said meekly. Clearing his throat, he spoke up, "Of course, Sergeant Richards."

"Let's go on that balcony." The Sergeant nodded toward the doorway to the balcony.

**

* * *

**

**A/N: I realize this is not all of Letters, but this saga is going to be a long story, so I'm cutting it up into small pieces. **

**Yes, if you saw Zombieland, Gunny is a fan of the double tap. Blatant lift from that movie, I admit it.**


	26. Letters Part 2

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews and the continued following of this long story. As usual, thanks to my partner-in-crime, Betherdy Babe.**

* * *

Swallowing, Rodney nodded and headed to the balcony while Richards remained behind him. _Richards is armed for duty and going to the same meeting as Jennifer, he's never late for anything. Why would he take time to talk to me?_

As Rodney stepped onto the balcony, he realized how high up in the tower the control room was. _Oh, shit! He's going to throw me off the balcony. Why can't I stop kissing her in public places? _

"Doctor McKay, I wanna talk to you about Doctor Keller," the big man said in a quiet voice.

_Oh no! I knew it! He's always with her, I knew he liked her._ Rodney looked up at the Marine and began to babble. "Listen, I don't know wh-what your perceived relationship is with Jennifer, but… well, she's an adult and… um… well, I'm an adult and what we… I mean…"

"Doctor McKay, if I was concerned about your _intentions_ with Doctor Keller, we would _not_ be having a _conversation_," Richards said with no humor in his voice. His eyebrows rose slightly as he glanced at the railing and back to the physicist. "Your relationship is not my concern unless you _hurt_ her. Then, you and I will have a _problem_." Richard's grey eyes narrowed slightly and he spoke with that voice of his that ran fear into the hearts of anyone who heard it.

"I can assure you that I'd never hurt her or let anyone else for that matter," Rodney snapped, finally finding his strength. Keeping Jennifer safe was important to him and if anyone questioned that, it pissed him off.

"That's the reason we're talking," Richards said with a slight upturn of his lips.

"Okay. So what did you want to ask about Jennifer?" Rodney said as he crossed his arms and cocked his head.

"Things are gonna get dangerous around here when the Wraith attack and we both know a battleground is no place for Doctor Keller," Richards said, staring into Rodney's eyes.

"Of course not," Rodney exclaimed. "She'll be at the Alpha site." _He's trying to tell me something and I suck at figuring these things out._

"But she'll _want_ to be here with those of us who will be the last to go. Especially after all that happened the last time she went off world," Richards said with a knowing look. "I need you to make sure she goes to the Alpha site. She'll listen to you."

Rodney wondered why Richards was so protective of Jennifer. The man protected all the civilians because it was his job, but his desire to protect Jennifer rivaled Rodney's at times. _Maybe he likes her but knows it could never be. _"Absolutely."

"Thank you, Doctor McKay, and good luck," Richards said nodding. "I know you'll come up with something." Gunny shook Rodney's hand.

"Uh…" Rodney was stunned as he shook Richard's hand. _A battle-hardened man like Richards has faith in me._ Rodney McKay never held a gun before joining this expedition, but he gained the faith of someone of Gunny's caliber. _Wow._ Smiling a true, sincere smile, Rodney said, "Thank you, Sergeant, and good luck yourself."

* * *

Rodney spent hours working on calculations to route power through the naquadah generators and then running computer simulations with Radek. Taking a break while Radek readied a jumper for a live simulation, he returned to his lab. Rodney sat heavily onto a chair, letting out a sigh and stared at his computer. _What would I possibly say to Jeannie?_

He had a falling out with his sister several years ago and had not spoken to her or about her since. They used to be close, well, as close as two highly competitive, genius math whiz kids could be. _Who are you kidding? You and Jeannie were never close. But, she is the only family I have. _

"Not to mention all the wisdom I have to share," he smiled as he spoke Jennifer's words aloud. Deciding he _did_ have something to say after all, he dug out a camera, found a clean uniform jacket in his office, even pulling on a Tac vest to look official, and set up the video recording.

After jotting down some notes on index cards, he was ready to start. Smoothing his hair, he stood in front of the tripod and held up his left hand with his fingers extended to count them down, "Right. And in five, four, three…" He stopped speaking and held up two fingers, folded his arms and looked serious. "This is Doctor Rodney McKay speaking to you from my base of operations in the lost city of Atlantis, located deep," he paused and gestured dramatically, "within the Pegasus galaxy. I record this message on the eve of our darkest hour. As I speak, an alien armada of biblical proportions is on its way; bent ... dare I say hell-bent, in keeping with the metaphor, on our destruction. We will do our best to stave off their attack but I am afraid that defeat is all but inevitable. I, and the other members of my team, face the most horrific deaths imaginable, as our very lives are sucked from our chests in a, in a, horrific... Okay, uh, starting again, starting again."

Rodney looked around the lab. Talking about horrific death at the hands of the Wraith reminded him of Jennifer's attack and he needed to stop speaking for a moment. A fine layer of perspiration formed on his upper lip and he felt his stomach squirm._ Better not to think about death. You know you're not going to die. You might be stranded in Pegasus for years, but you won't die here. _

The physicist restarted the camera with his desire to share his ideas with the world pushing him to continue. "And in five, four, three… My friends. I'm Doctor Rodney McKay of the Atlantis expedition, and as the facts of our heroic struggle against the Wraith and our untimely demise are already known to you, in that light, I'd like to pass along some final thoughts. Now, my extensive education, training and first-hand experience in the field of astrophysics has given me a unique perspective that few on Earth or, uh, well, on any other planet for that matter, can match. I'd like to take a few moments now to… uh… pass along that perspective to you. I'll begin with, um…" he paused to pick up some cards, "a few observations on a subject that is both near and dear to my heart: leadership."

* * *

Rodney got lost once again in his train of thought when he mentioned how a leader should be extremely confident. _Jennifer's never confident, but everyone follows her almost blindly. At least the soldiers do. Probably because they hope to get lucky._ The idea that men on the base thought about Jennifer in a sexual way caused him to feel a flash of anger. Knowing what he knew about her inexperience, he was even more jealous than before. _Can't believe I was her first kiss._ A grin spread over his face as his mind wandered back to his own first kiss at fifteen, which got him babbling.

"I caught mono kissing a girl in Algebra Club. Missed an entire month of school." Rodney chuckled as he thought about his classmate. "Still, the kiss was, uh, somethin', so it was, uh, probably worth it. April Bingham, cute blonde! God, you see, I love blondes, especially with the, uh, the short hair." He smiled and then thought of the last shorthaired blond to occupy his dreams, what felt like a lifetime ago. "Samantha Carter, if you're watching. Well, I hope you're watching because that means you broke the encryption. I knew you would. You know… you should know that I think you are just... so... well… you're great, you're really, really great, and, uh, I enjoyed working with you over the years." Rodney smiled as he thought of the interactions with the Lieutenant Colonel. His mind then drifted to a _longhaired_ blond and all the women of his past faded from his thoughts. Suddenly, feeling a bit like he was cheating on someone, he got back to his previous train of thought. "And let's get back to, uh..." he paused to clear his throat and folded his arms once again, "leadership."

* * *

As Rodney discussed how to lead a team, his mind wandered to the last conversation his team had before all hell broke loose. Along with Jennifer and Peter, they spoke about similarities between humans in Pegasus and on Earth. Ford commented that no one seemed to have pets in Pegasus. Teyla mentioned some people do keep small, domesticated animals, but not frequently. Rodney had been surprised when Jennifer mentioned a dog she had when she was a kid. It was a keeshond, like he took in for a brief time.

"Never cared for dogs: too much work, too needy, too unpredictable. I mean, you leave one door open, the tiniest little cracks, and they're gone. You look for them, you put up fliers, and it's no use. And since your father refused to pay for a license, the Animal Shelter has no way of tracking them. Y'know, God knows what happened to that little guy." Rodney sighed and tried to forget about that horrible summer when he was eight. "Now cats, now that's a whole different story. Cats are self-sufficient, they're dependable; you shake the box, they come running. Cynics, like Jennifer, would say it's because of the food but my cat... see, I truly believe he enjoys my company. There's something very comforting about coming home from work at the end of the day and having a familiar face waiting for you, you know?" As soon as he said the words, Rodney did not see his cat, only a smiling blond woman holding a small baby in her arms. Shaking his head and looking for his note cards, he continued. "Still, I digress. Where was I? Uh, right. Leadership."

* * *

Rodney finally gave up on leadership, but nothing else came to mind that was important to say. All he could think about was all that he was never going to get to do. "That's another sight I'll die without having seen. See, to be fair, when you've travelled as much as I've travelled, you'd think that missing Niagara Falls would be no big deal, but you know what? It gnaws at you. A lot of movies I wish I'd seen and won't see now. Never saw _Grease_, even though I had a thing for Olivia Newton John when I was a kid. Always wanted to see _Ghandi_; only saw the first half of _The Sixth Sense_ always wondered how that ended. I know Jennifer has _Grease_, so I really have no excuse not to watch it except that it's bad to drool over an actress while on a date…" Rodney stopped as he thought of _dating_ Jennifer. _Now we'll never get the chance to. At least she'll get to say goodbye to her dad._ His eyes widened as he thought of Jennifer's suggestion. "My sister. Jeannie? This is your brother, Rodney... obviously. I wanna s-say, um... I wanna say something. Uh... family is important. I-I've come to realize that because the people here have become a sort of a... kind of a surrogate family to me." Rodney could not help but smile as he thought about _everyone_ on Atlantis. "Now, I know what you're thinking: I've never really been the poster child for that kind of sentiment but, uh, when... when one's contemplating ones own demise, one tends to see things more clearly. I really do wish you the best, you know, and I'm sorry we weren't closer. Perhaps, um... if by chance I make it out of this, perhaps one day we can be, and I would like that. Uh…Jeannie, I…" Rodney paused again. _I'll be dead when she gets this._ "Listen, I need you to find someone for me. His name is Robert Keller and he lives in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. I… His… Um, I was supposed to watch over his daughter and… well… obviously due to circumstances _beyond_ my control, we… We're all probably dead so I failed. Tell him I'm sorry I didn't save Jennifer. Tell him I would never have gotten through this without her. She's smart and the most amazing woman that I ever met."

The tape ran out as Rodney stopped speaking. As he imagined what his life would be like without Jennifer, tightness formed in his chest making it difficult to breathe. _Don't know how I'd live if something ever happened to her. _

A call from Radek telling him that the Czech was ready in one of the jumpers to run a simulation pulled him out of his depressing thoughts. He shut down the video and took the tape with him to add to Ford's recordings.

* * *

Rodney and Radek ran a successful simulation, so Rodney had time to grab a bite to eat before he spliced all the tapes together and compressed the file. Ford said that he filled his tapes, so Rodney would need a little while to compress hours of video and audio. _Might as well have a full stomach to work on._

As Rodney entered the mess hall, he noticed for the first time that it was getting dark outside. _Wow, all day for taping and running the simulation, no wonder I'm starving._ Glancing around, he didn't see anyone in the mess hall. Grabbing some food and preparing to return to his lab, he thought he heard sniffling. Walking around the corner to the patio area, he found a sight the caused all thought of food to leave his brain.

"Jennifer? What's wrong?" he asked, practically throwing his tray on a table and rushing over to put an arm around her shoulders.

"I missed the taping. One of Bates' men got injured off world looking at Alpha sites and I was on duty. It took a couple of hours to identify the toxin from the bug that bit him and then to stabilize him. By the time I found Ford, he said he filled the tapes," Jennifer swiped at her eyes with her sleeve. "I won't get to record a message to my dad. I…"

"Hey, don't get upset. I've got a camera in my lab. I recorded my own message, so you can too. You've got plenty of time to do it. We won't try the dial out for a few more hours. Not until Sheppard gets back," Rodney said smiling and stroking her arm. This was a problem he could easily fix and it gave him immense pride when she finally smiled at him.

"There's still room for more data? Are you sure?" Jennifer asked with eyebrows raised.

"I'll make room so you can talk to your dad for as long as you want," Rodney grinned.

"Thank you, Rodney," Jennifer threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

Realizing that they were on a balcony outside the mess hall and that people walked by all the time, he finally reined himself in and only squeezed her with one arm before moving away. "Let's get some food and you can tape in my lab."

"Uh, okay," Jennifer said, looking shyly away.

"Is something wrong?" Rodney asked.

"No, I… I just… well, I didn't want everyone to hear what I had to say," she said finally looking him in the eyes.

"Oh," Rodney said. _I wonder if she'll mention anything to her dad about me. Where the hell did that thought come from?_ "You can use my office, then."

"Are you sure? I know…"

"Jennifer, I did this so you could talk to your dad, so let's grab some food and get back to the lab," he said as he picked up his tray. For about the tenth time, if he'd been counting, Jennifer stood staring at him while he walked away. "What?"

Jennifer smiled her _killer_ smile as he called it, the one that sent a shaft of joy through his heart. It began with her lips that just begged to be kissed and spread throughout her pixie-face to those perfect light chocolate-brown eyes. Feeling weak in the knees, he smiled back at her with a dopey grin. "Jennifer, is something wrong?"

"No, Rodney. Nothing's wrong," she smiled some more and linked her arm through his at the elbow. "Things couldn't be better."

Furrowing his brow, he allowed her to tug him back into the mess hall. _I will never understand women or this one in particular if I spend the rest of my life trying._

* * *

"Hi Dad," Jennifer said with a smile, but when she remembered exactly what she was doing, the smile faded. "If you're watching this, I… I'm not coming home. I'm so sorry to leave you alone."

She paused and looked directly into the camera. "I want to thank you though for making me come with Rodney and Carson. Coming here has been the best thing I've ever done. I've seen and done so much that I could never tell you about if…" she paused and took a deep breath, "I'm trying hard not to cry and have been making a fool of myself lately because I can't stop… I couldn't tell you all I've seen and experienced if we had a hundred years."

Jennifer's voice broke a few times and she had to stop and rerecord several parts, but she persevered. "I finally found a place I belong and people who care about me. I wouldn't trade that for anything…"

"Doctor Keller," Chuck's voice sounded in her earwig.

"What?" she snapped angrily, as she shut off the recording once again.

_At this rate, I'll never be done._

"Major Sheppard and Teyla returned with survivors from a culling and we need all medical personal to screen them," Chuck added sounding unfazed by her snapping.

"Sorry, Chuck. I'm on my way," Jennifer jumped up and went to leave. "Oh, the tape." She pulled it out of the camera. _I have so much more to tell Dad, but the important parts are here already. Besides, this is not going to be goodbye, Rodney is smarter than the Wraith and probably most of the Ancients too; he'll get us home._

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: I had to put all of Rodney's rantings in here at the request of a fan. He does go all over the place with them, so I got quite the workout trying to connect them. Hope you enjoyed, please review and let me know.**


	27. The Gift Part 1

**MGM owns all characters except OCs. Some dialogue from Gateworld.**

**Thank you for the reviews and those still adding it to alerts and favorites. Red Dwarf, who read the story in one day and sent review after review, thanks for the fun Saturday!**

**As always thanks to Betherdy Babe for beta. **

**Warning: I hate Heightmeyer, so if you love her, this is not a great portrayal. Sorry dwparsnip, you can have her! **

* * *

Most of Atlantis' staff: medical, senior military officers, science and operations assembled in the conference room for a briefing. Jennifer found herself seated between Sheppard and Sergeant Bates since she was part of the Alpha Site Team. Spending a great deal of time with the military and the other departments planning for the evacuation gave the physician hope that they would beat the Wraith. It also kept her extremely busy.

"According to Doctor Zelenka's calculations, we have less than one week before the Wraith arrive. I want options," Elizabeth said, jumping right into the briefing.

"You mean, besides crying ourselves to sleep," Rodney said from his seat next to Radek in front of his department. Realizing everyone was looking at him like he had been crying, he added, "Well, not me! I haven't slept in days."

Jennifer had not gotten a chance to see much of Rodney over the last five days. A quick bite to eat or a brief meeting in the hall to ask how the other was holding up and that was all. Her heart beat faster when their eyes connected briefly across the conference room, a place where they kissed passionately the last time they were there together. She felt herself blush and quickly looked away from the intoxicating baby blue eyes as the memory of that kiss flooded her brain.

A nudge from John made her look back at Doctor Weir. Certain John noticed the look between her and Rodney; she deliberately didn't look at the Major.

"And what do you have to show for your sleepless nights, Rodney?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, since we've gotten here, we've uncovered a number of defensive weapons systems beyond the shield. Wh..." Rodney started only to be cut off by Zelenka.

"We think our best option is the control chair," the Czech said, sitting up straighter in his chair.

"I was gonna say that," Rodney whined, causing Jennifer to smile.

Since Peter was assigned to work with her on the Alpha Site and the evacuation, Radek and Rodney worked more closely together the last week.

"Yes, but you were taking too long, as usual," Radek snapped.

"Yes, but the point is, this may not be our best chance," Rodney responded.

"Name a better one," Radek replied, obviously not the least bit afraid to get into it with his boss' boss in front of everyone.

"Gentlemen!" Elizabeth nearly shouted, losing her patience with the bickering.

"Of course, like the shield, power will be our biggest problem," Rodney said.

"We haven't even been able to initialize the chair yet, much less determine whether we can meet the power requirements to run it," Radek said.

"Okay, keep me posted. Doctor Keller, where are we with our Alpha site?" Elizabeth asked turning her attention to Jennifer and her team.

"We've selected one and the initial security inspection by Sergeant Bates and his men was just completed yesterday," Jennifer said, looking at the Head of Security and nodding. "Why don't you update everyone, Sergeant?"

Gunnery Sergeant Richards told her Bates had an ego almost equal to Rodney's so letting him speak would do wonders for his opinion of her, which was not much.

_Bates doesn't care for anyone not molded in the Corp, _Gunny also told her._ Don't take offense; it's nothing personal about you, except that you're not a Marine. _

Bates nodded to Jennifer and spoke, "We've completed the ground and aerial security sweep and are ready to begin establishing base camp. We're just awaiting final inspection by Major Sheppard."

"Right after lunch," John said in his casual manner. The bigger the crowd, the more relaxed the Major seemed.

"Good. Teyla, are the Athosians getting prepared for an evacuation?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes, but many believe there is no other world that is safe from the Wraith," Teyla responded.

Jennifer had worked with the Athosians and many were tired of the constant running and hiding. They truly enjoyed their new home on the mainland and many felt the City of the Ancestors would never fall into Wraith hands. The Ancestors would provide a way to defend it.

Jennifer looked more closely at her Athosian friend and noticed she looked exhausted. The vibrancy that radiated from Teyla at all times was missing. In it's place was a weariness she had never seen from the woman before and it made Jennifer feel terrible that she neglected her friends to moon over a relationship she and Rodney couldn't have. _I need to stop burying myself in my work._

"I am merely saying the people of Athos wish you to know that if we are going to stay and fight, they too will help defend the City of the Ancestors," Teyla said angrily, pulling Jennifer out of her thoughts.

"Well, that is very honorable, but I..." Elizabeth started only to be cut off by Kavanagh.

"Oh please! We can't possibly consider staying and fighting," he yelled.

"I disagree. I think it's entirely within the realm of possibility," the Major said, sitting forward.

Jennifer shook her head as John spoke up. She had not been in a room with Kavanagh in months. He still managed to annoy and disgust her at the same time with his condescending voice and superior attitude.

"There are tens of thousands of life-sucking aliens in highly advanced spaceships on their way here to destroy us, and we have… What? Two hundred people, most of whom are scientists who've never even fired a gun before," Kavanagh snapped.

"Some of us took our weapon's certifications and are actually quite proficient with a gun, not to mention the dozens of scientists with military backgrounds," Jennifer jumped in. She knew was being ridiculous because she highly doubted she could shoot at a living creature, let alone a Wraith intent on feeding; Kavanagh always made her want to fight though.

"Well not all of us get the _special_ treatment you get from the military," Kavanagh shot back.

Jennifer opened her mouth to respond as lots of movement could be heard around the room. Rodney and Radek swiveled in their seats to glare back at him while Carson moved to get up.

"Enough," John's sharp voice sounded. He obviously knew at least a dozen Marines were ready to pound on Kavanagh. "All I'm saying is, let's not give up, just yet. Granted you guys are scientists. No one's considering putting you guys on the front line, but science can turn the tide of war. Look at the... A bomb."

"Not exactly our proudest moment," Radek replied as most of the scientists groaned.

John glanced at Jennifer, "You've developed lots of great…"

"If you start talking about VX or mustard gas, I'm going to have to hit you," she said smiling. "You should know that Kavanagh doesn't speak for all of us. If it's a fight, many of us will be in."

"Now what was that we were supposed to all remember? It was something important... uh, oh yes, that's right, the Alamo," Rodney said with his usual snark as he raised his eyebrows at his team leader.

"The fact is, the Wraith aren't here quite yet, and until that moment I would like everyone to remain focused on what it is they do best. Like I said off the top, if there are any options, I want them. That's all," Elizabeth said as she waved her hands to dismiss the meeting.

"The day I let you near a battle is the last day I'll be commanding the military of Atlantis," John said as the meeting broke.

"I'm your secret weapon?" Jennifer smiled, realizing the need to relax the tension in the air.

"Hardly. If I want a mutiny on my hands, I'll be sure to put you in harm's way, _again_," the Major said softly as he leaned toward her.

Their eyes connected and Jennifer saw for the first time the guilt he carried with him regarding her attack by the Wraith. Before she could comment, John walked over to Doctor Heightmeyer in the back of the room.

_I'm definitely out of here. She always looks at me like I'm a bug under a microscope._ Jennifer turned to find Gunny glaring at Kavanagh across the room. "He's not worth it or at least that's what you tell me."

"He insults you again and he will be," Richards said as he nodded for her to join Rodney and Carson outside.

* * *

Doctor Kate Heightmeyer sat with barely controlled excitement as she waited for her next appointment to arrive. Having been involved with the Stargate program for several years, she knew all about Doctor Rodney McKay. _The genius whose arrogance almost killed members of SG1 at various times. I wonder if General Hammond really shipped him off to Russia? _

The _extremely_ intelligent fascinated Kate. Her younger brother was a genius, but became so overwhelmed by the stresses of earning a PhD while a teenager that he took his own life. Since then, her focus in psychology was around how excessive intelligence tends to segregate people from normal relationships and society. The Stargate program had an abundance of geniuses, so Kate joined when she was offered the opportunity.

Rodney McKay was the smartest man in the program according to most, but she had no opportunities to talk to him in a formal setting. He refused to have anything to do with any medical doctor except Carson Beckett and Jennifer Keller. Beckett and he became friends, if you could call the constant insulting and fighting friendship, in Antarctica.

The other physician he trusted, Doctor Keller, was another genius that Kate would love to interview, but the arrogant woman from Wisconsin refused to have anything to do with her. _She looks down her nose at me. Little…_ "Doctor McKay, please take a seat," Kate said as Rodney entered her office.

"Okay," he said and then rapidly looked around the room with his eyes staring at the door until it closed. "You're under the same oath as real doctors right? Patient confidentiality and all that stuff?"

Kate took a deep breath, "Yes, Doctor McKay, I'm a _real_ doctor and anything you say here is between you and me. I cannot reveal it."

"And you don't write it down anywhere, right?" McKay sat across from her desk and crossed his arms. "Folks can hack files around here."

"I believe you _personally_ encrypted all the medical files shortly after we arrived," Kate replied.

Rodney snapped his fingers and smiled a smug grin. "That's right, I did. After Hoff." He looked around again. "So, how does this work? I've never done this before."

"What about the evaluations to join the program?" Kate asked.

"Oh, those. Well, I've never _willingly_ come to talk to someone like you before," Rodney replied.

"Someone like me?" Kate asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah, a counselor. Or whatever you call yourself," he said, waving his hand in dismissal and looking around once more. "So, what do I do, lie down or is that just in movies?"

Kate took another deep breath. "Why don't you tell me why you scheduled an appointment with someone like me?"

"I can't sleep."

"Why not go to a physician for sleeping pills?" she asked.

"They don't work and I… the reason I can't sleep is…" Rodney paused and stood up. "Can we sit on the more comfortable chairs? That one's killing my back."

"Of course, whatever makes you more comfortable," she said as she rose to sit across from him.

"Much better," he said, reclining.

"What is the reason you can't sleep, Doctor McKay?" she asked.

"I… I'm concerned about…" His eyes darted around and his leg was twitching.

"Concerned about what?" Kate expected him to say the impending Wraith attack.

"See, that's what I hate, you just ask questions. I'm coming here for answers and you're just going to ask questions I could ask myself," he said with annoyance.

"I cannot provide answers if I don't know what you are concerned about," Kate replied, trying to keep the annoyance out of her voice.

"I'm concerned about someone dying," he said angrily.

"Who?" Kate asked positive he was going to say _me_.

"Someone… A friend," Rodney replied.

"I see. Does this friend have a name?" _Now we're getting somewhere. _

"Yes, she does, but it's not important," Rodney growled and suddenly his eyes widened.

"_She_? Is this someone you're in a relationship with?" Kate asked without meaning to lead him on so much.

"Just because it's a woman doesn't mean I'm dating her," Rodney snapped. "There's no time to date or even think about dating out here."

Kate raised her eyebrows, _Rodney's thinking about dating someone? _

"She's someone I like… as a friend… a really good friend," Rodney said and he suddenly got a far-off look in his eyes. "A great friend, actually, and I can't stop thinking something awful is going to happen to her. I can't sleep unless I pass out from exhaustion. With the Wraith on their way, I've got barely enough time to be worried about dying myself and now I'm worried about someone else. This never happened to me before. You've gotta tell me what to do."

"Do you have a reason to worry about her? Is she often in danger?" _Maybe he has a crush on Teyla?_

"Not too often. She's well protected, but…" Rodney stopped and a look of fear passed over his face. "Once… she was attacked right in front of me. I… It-it was the most-most terrifying moment…"

_Doctor Weir? They do work closely together and she is about the only one he shows respect for._ "Were you able to protect her?"

"No," he said with a sense of dread in his voice.

"You weren't?" Kate was confused; she thought Elizabeth said Rodney stepped between her and Kolya's gun.

"No. I said I'd take care of her, but don't think I really meant it. No, that's not true, I meant it, but like I'd make sure she was alive, not make sure she never got injured. Not like a bodyguard, but… I feel like that's what I want to do. I want to keep her locked away where nothing bad can ever happen to her. I want to drive away her nightmares so she can sleep again. I…" Rodney stopped talking and stared at the psychologist.

"I see. It sounds like you really care about this woman," Kate said. "Does she return these feelings?"

"What feelings?" Rodney snapped, crossing his arms.

"You just described some intense feelings of concern and fear for another person. Does she return your affection?" Kate could tell she was on to something.

"Affection? I never said I was in love with her or anything like that!" Rodney jumped out of his seat.

"The feelings you described are a form of love. It may not be romantic love, but you love this person," Kate said. _Who would have thought the Great Doctor McKay would come to me over a crush?_

"Oh no, no, no, no… I am _not_ in love. I don't have time for… for gifts or worrying about what I'll wear when I see her or any of that crap. I'm not a _romantic_ kind of guy." Rodney paced waving his finger at her.

"I am not passing judgment on your actions related to your feelings. I'm merely stating that it sounds like you are in love with this person and the emotions confuse you." Kate raised an elegantly shaped eyebrow.

"I can assure you that I am _not_ in love with Jennifer Keller! There's no confusion for me," Rodney yelled.

"We're talking about _Doctor Keller_?" Kate could not keep from speaking nor could she keep the shock from her voice.

"Who did you think I was talking about?" Rodney snapped and finally lost it. "You don't think I'm good enough for the beautiful doctor? That seems to be the general consensus around here. No, McKay's a pain in the ass. He's a coward and she'd never give him a moment's notice. Well, it would shock the hell out of them all if they found out she spent the night in my quarters or that we're quite intimate."

"Intimate?" Kate was shocked. _The seemingly aloof Doctor Keller, who only seemed to flirt with Major Sheppard and kept a harem of men at arm's length, had slept with Doctor McKay?_

"Well, we've got a lot in common!" he ranted, ignoring Kate's shock and silence. "She's been on the outside of things just as much as me. She's never even…"

"Never even what?" Kate asked, realizing she had no right to pry into Rodney's now _obvious_ relationship with Jennifer Keller. _They are always together and Jennifer is insanely protective of Rodney. Her battles with members of his department or her own, if they dare insult him, are legendary._ The time Sergeant Richards stopped her from nearly punching Kavanagh after he accused Rodney of sleeping with Doctor Weir to get his position came to mind.

"What?" Rodney stopped ranting and pacing. He was staring at Heightmeyer like he didn't know she had been there.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Kate was trying to get over the fact that she didn't notice the attraction between the two of them before. The smiles, glances and way they were always there for the other in difficult times: Rodney carrying her after the Wraith attack, Jennifer standing at his side, crying silently for the many deaths in Rodney's department and their intense look at the conference this morning. _I can't believe I didn't see it._

"You know, I… I'm… I need to go. Not sure… I doubt I'll be back, but… well… I'll be seeing you around base," he turned and quickly left. As he stepped through the door, he ran into his teammate. "Teyla?"

Kate looked up to see the Athosian, who snapped at her earlier, standing outside her door. "Teyla, come in."

Rodney mumbled something under his breath to Teyla, trying to cover up why he was in the psychologist's office. Letting out a sigh of annoyance at not getting the chance to delve into the inner workings of Rodney's mind, she was interested in counseling the first person from another galaxy to seek her services._ I imagine I'll get both of them for couple's therapy some day if they intend on staying together, between his arrogance and her general haughtiness, they'll have tons of problems. _

**

* * *

A/N: Confessions: No way does Rodney cry when seeing Heightmeyer. I also don't believe he would **_**ever**_** agree with Kavanagh in public even if he does agree with it. **


	28. Alpha Site

**MGM owns all characters except OC's**

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and for Betherdy Babe's beta.  
**

* * *

"Hand it over, Keller," a joyous voice sounded from behind Jennifer. Sergeant Tommy Stackhouse snapped his fingers near her ear because she had her head bowed and eyes closed, trying to ignore him.

"I can't believe you took that bet, Doc," the loud voice of Sergeant Will Carter came from his location near the weapons' cage. Laughter from the other soldiers filled the armory.

"Gentlemen, I see you're ready to go," Major Sheppard said as he entered the room.

It was his presence, along with Rodney and Carson that caused Jennifer's current predicament.

"Sir," the Marines and Air Force personnel in the room said in unison.

"At ease," John said.

"Come on, Keller. I won and you lost. Fair and square." Tommy couldn't keep the happiness out of his voice.

With eyes still closed Jennifer reached down to undo a Velcro flap on her blue BDU pants. Reaching inside, she groaned as she pulled out the prize she lost to Stack.

"Oh, yeah! The last _Butterfinger_ in the Pegasus galaxy is mine," Tommy said in a singsong voice. "I can just taste the chocolate and… What's in a _Butterfinger_ anyways?"

Laughter sounded again as the Alpha Site Security Team prepared to leave and Jennifer finally lifted her head to look at the young Marine. "I just thought…" she said and then paused to glare at the trio of men who cost her the last of her candy stash, "… with… I don't know, _half_ the military on Atlantis coming with me that I might be _safe_ enough to leave without a send off."

"I'm going to enjoy your candy bar," Carter said as he walked over, clipping his P90 into place. The tall, wiry Sergeant from Chicago, who served with Richards and Warrington for years at the SGC and in the Marine Special Forces, eyed the candy bar in Stackhouse's hand.

"Hey, no you aren't," Stack whined as he stepped back from the bench Jennifer was seated on. Her medical bag and backpack with clothing and supplies for a couple days sat next to her. "I'm not afraid of you, you know, Black Ops guy and all," he said as his voice lowered and he continued to backpedal.

The team of fifteen would be getting the Alpha site laid out, what groups would go where and how the influx of personnel would be handled during the actual evacuation. Peter Grodin and Jimmy Tung, the gate technician from Operations, would get basic gate controls in place, Bates and his security team would secure the site and Jennifer would supervise, or at least that's what they told her she would do. Not the way Jennifer wanted to spend a couple of days, so she had a laptop full of research to read.

The site was an abandoned village of over twenty buildings of various sizes spread out from the Stargate with plentiful water and the remnants of an agricultural processing complex. The Athosians would run the mill, which would convert a grain-like substance grown nearby to flour to feed everyone. The idea of taking the most important pieces of Atlantis and leaving the rest behind was heartbreaking, but survival was now the top priority.

"I'm not here to send the Doc off. I'm here to collect on a bet with Stackhouse," Sheppard said as he walked toward the young man from Colorado, who was now clutching the candy bar tightly to his chest near the far wall.

"Payback's a bitch, Stack," Jennifer said, smiling at the young Marine. "Sheppard never gave me a birthday present, so I'll be taking that candy bar back."

"I have something else in mind for your next birthday, so you'll just have to wait," John said with a hand out for the candy bar.

"Sir?" Stack whined as he slowly handed the candy over to his CO.

"Now, I don't need to tell all of you to keep your eyes open and not to forget your call-ins, so I won't," John said with a smile.

"And what wisdom do you two have to impart?" Jennifer asked, standing up and looking at her mentor and… She wasn't sure what to call Rodney because he was so much more than just her friend. _You have no right to think you are anything more than friends without his consent._

Carson rushed forward without a word to engulf her in his arms. "You be sure to eat regularly, don't drink the water until we get the treatment system in place, check your shoes for bugs when you get up in the morning…"

"Carson, relax. I have gone camping before with my dad and Uncle George." Jennifer left out how much she hated it, but she would do whatever it took for the expedition. _Even sleeping outside for a few nights until we sort out the buildings and department assignments._

Rodney stood near the door looking quite uncomfortable from Jennifer's vantage point crushed against Carson. The Scotsman pushed her back and seemed to be fighting back tears.

"Carson, I'm not off to my death. I'm going with the best soldiers on the base to a site that has been cleared by John and Aiden," she said, trying to calm him down.

"I know… I… I just…" Her mentor took a deep breath.

"I've been off world three times and was fine after all of them," Jennifer said.

"You injured yourself on M7G-677," Carson pointed out.

"A scratch!" she snapped. Memories of Keras always made her turn the darkest red imaginable and she couldn't afford to do that in front of all these men she'd be living with for several days.

"Where's your sidearm?" Rodney asked, finally stepping into the armory.

"As I said earlier, with half the military on the base with me, I don't…" Jennifer started.

"You had most of the men in _this_ room with you once, all armed, and you still got hurt," Rodney said, staring into her eyes.

Rodney never mentioned the Wraith attack before. He made her promise long ago to not even think about it. For him to bring it up now in front of everyone had her spooked. _What's wrong with him?_

"Rodney, you can't…" she started to be cut off once again.

"Put this on," Rodney said, walking to her with a holster he just took off the rack.

"I don't need a gun," she said defiantly as she heard men shifting around her in the room.

"Rodney's right, you should take a gun," Carson chimed in. "You're very good with one."

"Okay. Kavanagh pissed me off earlier so I admit to mouthing off, but do you seriously think I could shoot at something _alive,_ Carson? I can hit targets on a range, but…" Jennifer stopped speaking and breathing.

Rodney wrapped his arms around her waist to put the holster on. The backs of his hands rubbed her stomach and lower abdomen, sending all sorts of feelings and sensations throughout her body. Her face turned scarlet as she grabbed his hands with hers. "Rodney!" she hissed frantically, trying not to look at anyone and to stop him from adjusting the holster lower on her hip. "Stop it!"

The physicist ignored her as his strong hands pushed the belts down and around her thigh. When his hands surrounded her thigh to connect the strap and tug it lower, Jennifer almost lost her balance. Feeling weak in the knees and having difficulty breathing suddenly plagued the physician, as Rodney's hands seemed to burn through her BDUs sending a scalding hot wave up to her face, which was already on fire. "Stop! I can do it."

"Done," he said and then stepped over to grab a Beretta and several clips. "Here."

Jennifer reached out with a shaky hand to snatch the pistol from him. She refused to look at anyone and desperately wished she had not pulled her hair back into a tight braid and put a cap on her head. _Everyone saw that and saw your reaction, you'll never live it down. _It wasn't that she didn't want Rodney to touch her. She wanted just the opposite, but not in front of several guys who would not back down from teasing her for hours though.

"Take the extra clips," Rodney said in a business-like tone, totally unaffected by his recent manhandling of her. Without waiting, he reached out to open her Tac Vest and stick them in their pockets.

"I'm capable of getting my gear together," she snapped. Anger washed over her at his calm appearance. _He just touched parts of me no one ever has and he doesn't seem phased at all. _

Rodney said nothing after her angry outburst, his blue eyes looked into hers with one eyebrow cocked in a _don't-mess-with-me-right-now_ fashion. His eyes then glanced over her head and he nodded slightly.

When Jennifer turned to see who he had been looking at, she saw several Marines focused on their CO, who just finished _her_ candy bar.

"All righty. Since Keller's armed, I think it's safe for you guys to go," John said in a strangled voice.

Jennifer looked at the Major and wanted to slug him. The humor and barely contained laughter written on his face was the final straw. The poor woman had been nearly groped by a man she dreamed about nightly and her _big brother_ was going to laugh hysterically once she left.

"I can't wait for some peace," Jennifer barked, turning abruptly away from Rodney to grab her packs, which were already gone.

"You heard Doctor Keller, time to move out," Gunny said from behind her.

After the soldiers filed out, she turned angrily to block the Marine's path and shouted up at his six-foot-three inch frame, "I know you get after guys for looking at me in a fashion you don't appreciate. Why did you allow Rod… Doctor McKay to… to… embarrass me like that?"

"Doctor McKay didn't do anything inappropriate," Gunny said as he walked past an irate Jennifer Keller, nodding to Warrington to wait for her.

"Didn't do…" she shouted at his back. "His hands…" She stopped talking as she saw the big man, who was often her shadow, trying to contain his laughter like Sheppard. "The next time you're in the infirmary Sergeant, I'm pulling out the big needles, 10-gage and nothing smaller."

The smile faded from his dark face and Warrington spoke in a soft, deep voice, "Gunny knows McKay's one of us."

"One of you?" Jennifer turned back around and stared into his dark brown eyes.

"One of your protectors," Warrington said. "We'd better get going. Don't want Doctor McKay to suspect anything or I'll never have a warm shower again."

* * *

Once they reached the Gateroom, Jennifer looked at Rodney closely and noticed that he was looking at Gunny with a nod passing between them. _So, they're in collusion against me. Neither think I can take care of myself. Men!_

Any other time, she'd feel warm all over with the knowledge that Rodney cared, but today he touched her rather _intimately_ and acted like nothing happened. _After all we've been through, I really thought he liked me. _The naïve woman was confused and angry.

As she walked up the platform around the gate, she noticed Carter and Stackhouse had taken her bags. Turning to Warrington, she muttered, "I don't need preferential treatment like Kavanagh said I get. I can carry my stuff."

"Don't push your luck and don't think twice about that asshole," Warrington said. "You're the kind of person we love to take care of because you don't expect it. Kavanagh we take care of because we have to."

Jennifer raised her eyebrows at the comment and then turned when Peter called her name. Smiling brightly at the Brit, she walked to him, noticing glares from Rodney and Carson aimed at the engineer.

"Ready to go? This is rather exciting," Peter said.

"You've only been off world to Manara, right?" Jennifer asked, deliberately avoiding the other scientists.

"That's right. With you," he said and his brown eyes twinkled.

"Together again," Jennifer said with a smile.

"Lucky me," he said, raising his eyebrows.

A snort from Rodney drew her eyes to his, which continued to look at her without any emotion showing except anger directed at Peter. To see his expressive face practically vacant scared her and she wondered if it was an omen about the mission.

The gate dialed, pulling her from her thoughts and Jennifer waited expectantly for the wormhole to form. This was really her big chance to show everyone that she could take care of herself and complete this important mission.

"Take care, Jennifer," Carson said, sounding choked up and causing her to look back at the trio that cost her the _Butterfinger_.

"Stay out of trouble," John said.

"You guys stay out of trouble," she said to John and Carson with a smile.

When she looked at Rodney, his face had a new expression, one she'd never seen before. He was looking at her like she was the most important thing in his life and she was being taken away. Her eyes widened as he forced a smile and then quickly turned as if it was too painful to watch her leave.

"Come on, Doc," Warrington said from behind her. "He'll be okay," he added in a low voice so only she could hear.

* * *

The past two days at the Alpha site flew by so quickly, Jennifer was shocked when she noticed the sun setting before her second night of sleeping in a tent. The village was large, stretching almost a quarter of a mile from the gate to nestle against a large wooded area at the back of the valley. It did not seem like a good idea to Jennifer to spread people out in the buildings for sleeping, so they slept in a tent city near the center of the town.

Jennifer had thought there would be nothing for her to do since she was supposed to _supervise_, but the doctor got a crash course on what supervising the military really meant. They didn't make decisions without her sign off.

The Head of Security wanted to plant perimeter mines on the hillside surrounding the camp. Jennifer had no idea if they were necessary and was certain Bates was asking this to torment her. The physician found herself looking at Gunny often during her discussions with Bates for a flick of his grey eyes or a nearly invisible nod. It was odd that she could read the _unreadable_ Gunnery Sergeant Richards so well_. A fact I need to sort out one of these days. _Richards was against the mines, so Jennifer took a stand and saw Bates actually looked relieved.

That night at dinner around the campfire where they ate their meals, Sergeant Bates sat next to her and Peter Grodin. Jennifer smiled at the Head of Security and he smiled back. The beautiful genius felt like she just got an A on an exam.

"It's been wonderful to be alone with you the past two days," Peter said from her left.

Looking around at the half-dozen Marines and Air Force personnel seated near the campfire and knowing others were patrolling around their location, Jennifer said incredulously, "I hate to break it to you Peter, but we are hardly alone. We actually have more people around us than normal."

"Ah," the handsome Brit said, raising a finger to make his point. "We do not have our chaperone, however."

"Chaperone?" Jennifer was clueless about what he was talking about.

"Who is always with us when we work together on Atlantis?" Peter asked, raising his dark eyebrows.

"Radek?" Jennifer thought of all their research together.

"Yes," Peter said with a grin.

"Do we need a chaperone?" Jennifer was surprised Peter would flirt with her so openly. _What's up with him?_

A huge grin erupted on his face. "I wish," Peter said, laughing. "I know you're not interested in me and it breaks my heart. Just wanted to say it was nice to spend time getting to know you better without worrying about Radek torturing me for weeks."

"Radek? Torturing you?" Jennifer felt her cheeks burn red. She was not embarrassed that the Czech was looking out for her, rather the physician found herself hurt that Rodney would not be tormenting Peter for flirting with her.

Last night was spent reliving the incident with Rodney in the armory. _How could he touch me like that and not be affected? The way he kissed me, I thought he was interested in me as more than just a friend. Was he messing around like guys the girls spoke about in college? _Jennifer's confusion was capped off by the look of longing Rodney gave her in the gate room before she left. All the differing messages she received before she left led to a restless night and would once again.

"Oh, he's pretty ruthless. Do you know Kavanagh can't use a transporter to go anywhere on Atlantis by himself?" Peter said, drawing laughter from all the men around the fire.

"Well Radek decked him at your staff meeting months ago, so…" Jennifer started to be cut off by Peter.

"No, this happened after the _Carson_ incident," Peter chuckled, taking a bite of his MRE and grimacing. "Man, do I miss Mom's bubble and squeak."

"What?" Stackhouse asked from across the fire. If it involved food, Tommy wanted to know about it.

"It's fried potatoes and vegetables. I grew up with Mom cooking them after we had a big meal. You make them from leftovers after the Sunday roast dinner," Peter explained with a far off look on his face.

"My dad and I would always have a big Sunday meal when I was growing up," Jennifer said, reminiscing as well. "Usually steak, brown rice, corn on the cob and an angel cake with hot chocolate to cap it off."

"Enough with the food," Bates snapped. "I have never missed Mom's pork roast so much."

Everyone was quiet for a while thinking about home and all the food they might never eat again.

"Just because we're leaving Atlantis doesn't mean we can't ever get to Earth, does it?" Kyle Wilkins, a young Sergeant from Montana, asked with obvious concern in his voice.

The young man went through basic training with Anthony Mace and Jennifer always found herself getting sad when she looked at him. Wishing she had something comforting to say, she was shocked by the person who did respond.

"No, it doesn't," Bates jumped in. "Doctor McKay'll find a way to get us back. We can take the dialing crystal for Earth with us and use it in another Stargate."

"But what about power?" Air Force Sergeant Tyler Zelle asked between mouthfuls of food.

"Are we taking the ZPM with us?" Lieutenant Reed asked.

"That's a great question," Bates said, looking at Peter.

"If we take the ZPM, we can't dial the gate," Peter explained. "We will take all the jumpers we can and our naquadah generators, but the functioning ZPM will have to stay with the city to help with the self-destruct as well."

Jennifer felt her heart sink at the thought of Atlantis being destroyed, but letting it fall into the Wraith's hands was out of the question.

Silence reined around the campfire for a while. It was Lieutenant Reed, who was the senior by rank only, who spoke, "We should get some sleep because we head back to Atlantis to start bringing supplies through tomorrow night."

The Marines did not respect the Air Force logistics officer and it made Jennifer annoyed because Reed was a good guy. _Just because he's not a Marine and hasn't been in battle doesn't lessen his role on the expedition or his commitment to the military._ "Reed's right. Let's hit the hay, so to speak."

"Slept in the hay barn much as a kid, Keller?" Will Carter said, chuckling.

Before Jennifer could respond, a sharp voice from directly behind her called out, "Carter!"

"I know, Gunny, I know," Carter said, nodding as he stood up and grabbing a Stinger surface-to-air-missile launcher. "Perimeter," he barked in an exact imitation of Richard's voice.

There was no soldier on Atlantis that would dare poke fun at Richards except Will Carter. The two men spilled so much blood together the bond between them was strong. Only Robert Warrington had been with Gunny longer, but he was soft spoken and never joked around. The Bermudan did chuckle as he stood up to accompany Jennifer to her tent.

Warrington had been her constant companion over the last two days because Richards was busy organizing security for the site. Carter or Stackhouse were often around too. She felt silly when three Marines accompanied her around the new base of operations, but quickly got used to it.

"You're in charge," Gunny said with finality after the first six hours of her complaining. Jennifer didn't comment about the security detail after that.

* * *

The next day went by quickly as the return to Atlantis approached. The morning check-in revealing nothing new regarding either the Wraith armada's progress or any changes to the current evacuation plans. Jennifer was tired and could not wait to sleep in her bed for a couple days before she had to return to the cots they were using on the Alpha Site. _Rodney will really be complaining about his back._

Rodney had once again kept her from sleeping. Her confusion over what happened weighed on her mind so much that she was dying to talk to someone. Warrington was her shadow this afternoon and the Marine had been talking to her much more freely than he had before on this mission. She found out he had two younger sisters and a younger brother still in Bermuda. His parents died several years ago, so as the oldest, he had a responsibility for his younger siblings. He told her the oldest sister was getting married later this year and he knew she would be upset that he was gone, but his family was proud to have a soldier in their midst.

Jennifer took a deep breath and decided to ask Warrington his opinion of Rodney's feelings toward her. Since he seemed to be aware of Jennifer's feelings toward the physicist and would be the perfect person to ask, she steeled her nerves to receive his feedback.

"Warry, can I ask you something?" Jennifer asked as they surveyed a building near the back of the settlement. Since this building was farthest from the gate, the physician wanted to offer it to science for their radioactive work.

"Anything, Doc," he replied, looking at the tree line not far from them.

"You saw what happened with Doctor McKay before we left," Jennifer stated.

"Yes," he said, trying to hide a smile.

Jennifer turned to face him fully with hands on her hips. "Why are you hiding a grin?"

"Because I've observed Doctor McKay for years and seeing him so concerned about another person is humorous. Especially since he thinks no one is on to him," Robert said finally letting the grin break his face.

"_On to him_?" Jennifer asked.

"He doesn't think anyone notices how much he cares about you, but he's wrong," Warrington said. "We see everything on Atlantis because no one notices us."

Jennifer was about to ask another question when she heard the gate dialing. "Peter?" she called on her radio.

"No. We're not expecting a dial up from Atlantis," Peter said with concern laced through his voice.

"Security to the gate!" Bates' voice roared through the radios.

Jennifer and Warrington turned to run back up between the buildings to the gate. The Marine ensured that he slowed enough to match her strides so he could remain at her side.

They saw the wormhole connect and three darts came through. The last one out blew up before it managed to get much altitude. Its fiery wreckage crashed into several buildings, one of them being the gate operations building where Peter and Jimmy Tung worked.

"Peter!" She screamed as fear gripped her.

As if she were watching a movie, she saw Gunny near the gate take aim at the other two darts with his Stinger missile launcher. Carter, Lieutenant Reed, Sergeant Yamamoto and three other Marines were ahead of their current location behind a low wall. It was the separation line between the section of town with small houses and the larger buildings on the main thoroughfare. Through the smoke and flames, she also saw Stackhouse and Bates run to the building that contained the engineers.

She and her bodyguard had to halt their race to the gate because a dart circled back shooting at the buildings on either side of them. Explosions rocked the air and Jennifer was knocked to her knees.

"Doc," Warrington shouted as he paused to grab her Tac vest. "We gotta get to the gate."

"But Carter and those guys are going to be trapped over there," she said, uncertain what she could do about it. One of the buildings hit by the Wraith explosives crashed across the roadway, isolating the men.

"Down!" a voice roared in her earwig as she heard the whine of a dart. It was the voice of Richards, who must be able to see her and Warrington from the gate through the flames and smoke.

Warrington pushed her to the ground on the side of the street and dove into the shadow of the building after her as a culling beam swept the location they just vacated.

The painful impact with the ground seemed to awaken Jennifer to the gravity of the situation. _The Wraith are here. The Wraith will lock out the gate and cull them all_. Her heart raced and her petite frame shook as Warrington pulled her up from the ground. Fear gripped her and made her freeze.

"Jennifer! Move!" he shouted, dragging her forward.

A dart flew past again only this time the beam left something behind: six Wraith. _The culling beam works backwards? It can deposit as well as scoop up?_ The concept caught the young genius and made her think for a moment. It was a moment too long as a blue blast came toward her and Warrington.

"No," she cried, expecting to be hit by a stun blast. She was hit and driven into the hard dirt by a couple hundred pounds, two hundred seventy three, according to Warrington's last physical.

Screaming could be heard in her earwig; too many voices to hear any one over the others. The sound of another explosion rocked the air as Jennifer looked up to see a black trail of smoke across the sky. _They took out another dart. Good going, guys._

A grunting sound suddenly pulled her back to her present situation. A Wraith drone, as the soldiers called them, approached her and Warrington, who was still pinning her to the ground.

Jennifer knew she had to get free from Warrington and get his P90, which was out of her reach as she lay on her back beneath him. Pulling the 9mil from her holster, knowing it was useless against the Wraith, but she had to do something. Digging her feet and left hand into the earth, she pushed her body from under the big Marine, raised her right hand and shooting at the approaching Wraith. The bullets went wide in most instances since the recoil from the handgun made her lose aim.

The drone paused when his victim started fighting back. It roared, if that was what you could call the sound, and lifted its stunner to shoot her.

The next few seconds went by so quickly Jennifer could never tell anyone how she got free from the dead weight on top of her and found herself in possession of a P90. A surge of adrenaline must have given her strength to shove herself backwards and then launch herself forward on her stomach to get the P90. Once in possession of the automatic weapon, she unloaded it into the Wraith.

Once the drone fell, she saw two more turning in their direction. The other three were heading toward Carter's position. _Her team._ _These men were all her responsibility._ Tears of stress, pain from her body being thrown to the ground twice or just pure terror filled her eyes, clouding her vision. The Wraith started walking toward her and Warrington. It was as if they knew the P90 was empty. The extra clips were under the stunned soldier and she would have little success rolling him over and loading the gun in her current condition. Seeing the stunner from the Wraith she killed not far away, she scrambled on all fours to get to it. The drones were not as stupid and picked up the pace when they saw her get the stunner.

Jennifer had neither held nor fired one, but she aimed in the general direction of a drone and pulled the trigger. The Wraith was hit and staggered. Remembering it took two or three hits to take down Steve, she shot again and again, knocking down one Wraith and then turning on the other. Once both Wraith were knocked down, she became aware of shouting in her earwig.

"Fall back," the voice of Elizabeth Weir came over the radios.

"Negative!" Bates yelled. "We've got people cut off from the gate. Wraith are on the ground and there's still one dart in the air."

"Return to Atlantis so we can send reinforcement," Doctor Weir snapped at Bates.

"Doctor…" Bates started.

"That's an order," Elizabeth yelled back.

"Understood," Bates barked back. "Fall back through the gate," he said in a voice that told Jennifer he regretted giving those orders.

Jennifer didn't realize they had dialed Atlantis, but was glad to see some of them being saved. She looked through the smoke at the blue event horizon and saw Peter and Jimmy supporting each other as well as Stack and Tyler providing cover fire so the engineers could get out. Stack and several other soldiers ran through after. A slight smile crossed her lips as she sat back on her heels next to Warrington's stunned body.

She glanced to her left, she saw several Wraith at the wall occupied by Carter and his team moments ago. Fear shot through her. _Where did they go?_

Jennifer looked around to find them, she saw Gunny at the gate with Bates, continuing to fire at the Wraith. Bates was holding his arm and tugging him toward the event horizon. Her last view of Gunny was of his gun blazing as he stepped back into the wormhole. _He'll never forgive himself for this, I just know it._ A sob ripped through the doctor as she continued to look for any other humans besides herself and Warrington.

TBC

* * *

**A/N: I know I'm evil, but haven't given you a good cliffhanger in a while, since I've been following the show lately. **

**I confess I did not check with my military adviser about the Stinger missile, but I think they are still used.**


	29. Alpha Site Part 2

**MGM owns all characters except OC's**

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and for Betherdy Babe's beta. Radio chatter is in italics to distinguish it.**

**Also, I don't believe the swears I use in these action sequences are as **_**real**_** as would be used in combat, but I wanted the T rating so use your imaginations as to what they would probably would be saying.**

**Thanks Betherdy Babe as always, Koinekid and to all the readers and reviewers who keep me writing.**

* * *

Elizabeth Weir, Kate Heightmeyer and John Sheppard returned via the control room to Elizabeth's office after witnessing Teyla being taken control of by a Wraith. Ford was left with Carson to ensure the Athosian was okay when she woke up. The debate about what to do next was halted as Chuck yelled, "Incoming wormhole! Getting Sergeant Bates' IDC. It's the Alpha site."

_"This is Sergeant Bates. Code Red! We're under attack! There are Wraith at the Alpha site," the Head of Security was screaming over the sound of gunfire, explosions and general chaos._

Elizabeth and John looked at each other with stunned expressions. _What could possibly have gone wrong?_ The Major mentally went over all they knew about the planet. It had been fully culled several years before and no one had gone there since according to the Athosians.

"Bates, get your people out of there," John shouted as he ran down the stairs, grabbing a gun off of a soldier on the way.

"Fall back," the expedition leader echoed.

"_We've got people cut off from the gate," _Bates yelled.

"Return to Atlantis so we can send reinforcement," Doctor Weir snapped, obviously not wanting another debate with Bates.

_"Doctor…" Bates replied._

"That's an order," Elizabeth yelled, looking down at John from the control room.

The Major wasn't sure that was the best thing to do because the dart could lock out the gate, but he didn't want to get into a fight in front of so many people. Hopefully, not too many people were cut off.

_"Understood," Bates barked back. "Fall back through the gate." _

Peter Grodin and Jimmy Tung were the first through, followed by several Marines and Air Force personnel; some dragging stunned or injured men with them. Bates was next, pulling Richards with him. The Gunnery Sergeant stood staring back at the event horizon once he came through. John thought it odd that Richards didn't have a weapon. To rectify the situation, the Marine grabbed one from the nearest soldier to the gate.

"Carter, do you copy?" Bates yelled as he took up position with his weapon raised toward the wormhole.

Static could be heard on the end of the line.

"What the hell happened, Sergeant?" Sheppard shouted as he approached Bates with weapon raised. "Where's the rest of your team?" The Major scanned the crowd taking mental note of the missing people.

"Carter, Warrington, Wilkins, Yamamoto, Dawkins, Benson, Juarez, Jaworski and," the head of security paused and glanced at Richards before continuing. "…Keller are missing, sir."

_Keller._ John felt his heart drop. Of all the civilians on Atlantis to be in harm's way, the fact that it was Jennifer meant this was going to have huge ramifications for the expedition. She was liked by almost everyone on the base, much more than _liked_ by a few.

If John could save his brother or the sweet young doctor, he'd choose her in a heartbeat. Her friendly, witty demeanor, the way she lit up a room or the fierce way she defended those she considered her friends all gave her a place in his heart that he never wanted to let anyone into again. Taking a deep breath to get rid of the sudden pain he felt at her potential loss, he turned back to the control room. Elizabeth looked as upset as he felt after Bates listed the missing.

The static that filled their earwigs now filled the speakers in the Gateroom. Gunfire and shouting replaced the static suddenly.

"_Holy shit!" a panicky voice came over the speakers followed by static and then, "One minute they were there… then… they're gone. What the…"_

_"Get a grip, sir," a calmer, younger voice said._

_"We gotta get out of here!" the first voice shouted. "Atlantis! Atlantis! This is Lieutenant Reed, don't shut down the gate."_

"_Lieutenant, calm down!" a third voice shouted only to be drowned out by weapon's fire._

"Lieutenant Reed, this is Major Sheppard. What's your situation?" Sheppard spoke into his radio, but got no response. "I don't think they can hear us," he said, running to the control room with Bates.

"Doctor McKay to the control room," Elizabeth called over the speaker.

"McKay? Is she nuts?" Bates asked his CO.

John had to agree. Letting McKay know Jennifer was on the other side of that gate was not going to help him do anything useful. _How the hell did this happen?_ Knowing he had no time to think about it, he said, "Chuck, give me city-wide. This is Major Sheppard. All off duty military personnel report to the armory and all pilots to the jumper bay."

"Major, this is Ford. What's going on?" Aiden asked over the Major's earwig.

"The Alpha Site was attacked and we need rescue teams prepped to go as soon as we dial them back," Sheppard barked.

"I'm on it," Ford shouted. "Heading to the armory, sir."

"_Atlantis, why don't you answer?" the panicked voice of Reed came over the radio again._

Doctors McKay and Zelenka walked into the Gateroom and saw soldiers with weapons aimed at the gate, medical staff treating a few injured people and Peter Grodin staring blankly at the blue event horizon.

"What the hell's going on?" McKay barked as he approached the platform near the Gate.

"Not now, McKay," Sheppard called down to him. _Need to get him focused._ "We can't transmit to the Alpha site. Come up here and see what you can do."

"Alpha site? Why, what's…" Rodney stopped speaking when his eyes settled on Richards. "What happened?" the terror in McKay's voice echoed through the room.

_Sergeant Carter's distinctive voice came over the radio, "Keller! Son of a bitch! Did anyone see Keller?"_

_"Not since she took out those Wraith," the accented voice of Sergeant Koji Yamamoto replied._

_"Keller!" Carter called._

_"They got culled. Oh God, we gotta get to the gate. It's still open," Reed's terror-filled voice screamed. _

_"There are a dozen Wraith between the gate and us, not to mention that dart flying around," Yamamoto said. "We stay put until we get the situation figured out, sir."_

"_Figured out! We're screwed if we don't get out of here!" Reed screamed._

_"Keller, answer me." Carter sounded desperate._

"You left her!" Rodney screamed, pushing against the nearest soldier to get to Richards. The rage on his face obviously frightened the young soldier who was trying to hold him back and he looked around for back up so Bates ran back down the stairs.

"McKay! Not now," Sheppard barked. "I need you to try to boost the signal. Get up here. You too, Radek."

"What happened to her?" Rodney glared up at John as Bates arrived to escort him to the control room. "I thought you guys would die for her! How could you leave her behind?"

"Rodney, we need your…" Elizabeth yelled.

"I can't help you. The receiver on their end must be damaged," the physicist cried, continuing to shoot daggers at Richards who never looked away from the event horizon.

"Why don't you look at it first, Doctor," Bates said.

"_We don't know that, sir," Yamamoto said.  
_

Silence descended over the assembly as static filled the air.

"McKay!" John shouted as he returned to the top of the stairs.

"Rodney," Radek said, grabbing his department head's arm and pulling him toward the stairs. "You too, Peter." Grodin fell in on the other side of Rodney as the suddenly quiet Doctor McKay followed them blindly up the stairs.

Once in the control room, the three engineers moved to the communication's console. Elizabeth, John and Heightmeyer, who had stayed toward the back of the control room until they entered, stood near them. Peter and Rodney appeared to be in a state of shock so Radek sat down to increase their reception until voices from the Alpha site's radios filled the room once again.

_"Thank you, God," Carter said. "Where are you?"_

_"Medical supply building. Next to the last explosion site," Jennifer Keller said weakly, coughing quite a lot._

Rodney suddenly grabbed onto the edge of the console and squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. Zelenka, Grodin, Sheppard and everyone else let out their own held breaths and exchanged glances.

John never felt more relief at the sound of another's voice since his incident with the Iratus bug. It was Jennifer and Carson who gave him the confidence that he would survive that ordeal. _Please let her get out of this like she got us out of trouble._

"_Are you injured?" Carter asked and then barked. "I'll take point. Wilkins take our six. Move out."_

"_No, only winded from dragging Warrington here. He's really heavy," she replied, gasping for breath. _

_"Dragged him? Why?"_

_"Because he's stunned and can't walk," she replied with attitude in her voice._

There was silence from the radios again.

"Radek, what did you do?" Rodney barked as if coming out of his trance. "Get outta that seat."

"I didn't do anything," Radek replied indignantly. "They aren't talking."

"Concentrate, you two," Elizabeth snapped as voices came back over the radio.

"_Wait. If we go inside, we'll be trapped," Reed's voice broke the silence._

"_They can't cull you from inside," Jennifer said in her calm, doctor voice._

_She's keeping it together_, John thought as he listened intently along with the others. "Nice job getting the static cleared up, Radek."

The two engineers were staring at the Stargate and didn't acknowledge his compliment. He could not imagine what the three of them, including Grodin, were going through. In addition to the crush John knew all of them had on Jennifer, they were all used to being able to actually _do_ something to help. In this case until they could redial the gate they were useless like all the heavily armed soldiers in the Gateroom and the men gathered in the jumpers above them.

_"How do you know that?" Reed asked._

"_In their attacks they destroy structures to drive people outside," Jennifer explained. "Is anybody injured?"_

_"No, we're good, Doc," Carter said. "So why did you risk your life for Warrington? Don't you know he'd die for you? Any of us would."_

_"Because he's my responsibility," she snapped. "All of you are."_

_"What are you talking about?"_

"_I'm in charge of the Alpha site, Carter," she said._

_"Not anymore. This is a combat situation," Carter explained. "It's your job…"_

_"Uh-oh, the dart's coming back," Yamamoto said._

_"This can't be happening. Oh no, this can't be happening. I don't wanna die like this," Reed whined._

"He's losing it, sir," Bates said.

"I know. He's never been in combat before," John said, shaking his head. "How did this happen, Sergeant?"

"The Wraith just showed up, sir," Bates explained. "It's like they knew we were there."

John took a second to glance at Elizabeth and Kate Heightmeyer as a silent message passed between them. Sheppard's eyes caught Rodney's as well; the physicist's blue eyes were full of anger and panic. "McKay, why don't you get up to the jumper bay and see if they need a hand?"

"I'm not leaving," Rodney snapped, still looking from the communication's console to the gate and back.

As the radio chatter started up again, the men and women on Atlantis listened with heavy hearts to the stranded team.

_"Calm down, Nick," Jennifer's steady voice said. "We're not going to get culled."_

_"They destroyed the DHD," Reed cried. "We can't dial out."_

Kate Heightmeyer spoke from her location near the men at the console. "It won't matter, right?"

"Of course not," Rodney snapped. "Gates don't need DHDs to be dialed.

_"But Atlantis will dial us. When the gate shuts down," Wilkins said._

_"Hey, why's the gate still open anyway? Doesn't it shut off after you pass through?" Yamamoto asked. _

"_Yes, once everything passes…" Jennifer stopped speaking. "I love you, Gunny."_

_"What?" Carter asked._

_"Richards dropped his gun in the gate. If an object is partially in the event horizon, the gate won't shut down for…"_

_"Thirty-eight minutes," Carter said. "The man is a genius. A strategic genius."_

John addressed Richards in the Gateroom through the radio, "Smart thinking, Gunny."

The big Marine stood still in the Gateroom, refusing to take his eyes or his concentration off the event horizon.

"How long has the gate been…" John started.

"Twenty-one minutes," Radek said. "It's been open twenty-one minutes."

"_Thirty-eight minutes from when? Initial dial or when the gate was blocked?" Yamamoto asked._

"_Why are you all staring at me?" Jennifer shouted, her calm doctor voice replaced by an annoyed one. _

"_Because you hang out with the geek squad," Yamamoto said. _

"_You might as well be wearing blue," Wilkins chimed in._

"_And because you're a genius," Carter snapped. "Think, Jennifer. From when?"_

John looked at Rodney and before the physicist could answer, Jennifer's voice said, "Dial up."

"Yes. Good answer," Rodney and Radek said almost simultaneously.

_"So how much time did this take?" Jennifer asked._

"_I don't know twenty, twenty-five minutes," Carter said._

"_Thirteen minutes left, to be safe," Jennifer said. _

John looked at Elizabeth, who had moved next to him to look down over the assembled soldiers, and whispered. "You gotta admit she's pretty amazing out there. Keeping it together like that."

"Now is not the time to say _I told you so_," Elizabeth said harshly.

_"To get past a dozen Wraith," Yamamoto continued._

_"And the dart," Wilkins chimed in._

"_Yeah," she replied softly._

_"Screw this," Reed said._

_"Nick!" Jennifer screamed._

_"Damn it," Carter swore. "Lieutenant, get back here."_

_"He's lost it," Wilkins could be heard saying softly. "Poor bastard's lost it."_

John took a deep breath and closed his eyes. It was obvious that the soldiers listening all knew what the young Marine meant; Reed was panicking and not thinking rationally.

"Lost it? What does that mean?" McKay asked.

Kate spoke, "It appears Lieutenant Reed is having a panic attack. He's obviously run into danger."

Rodney swallowed and looked away from the psychologist. John recalled reading that Rodney suffered panic attacks when younger in his personnel file. _Must be hitting close to home._

_The sound of heavy breathing and a lot of very colorful words being shouted by Sergeant Will Carter came over the radio. Next, the sound of the air being knocked out of someone and a struggle ensued._

_"Nick. Nick. Stop. You're going to…" Jennifer started only to be cut off by what sounded like a slap._

"_Son of a…" Carter said._

_"You knocked him out," Jennifer scolded._

"_Dart!" Yamamoto screamed._

The familiar sound of a dart engine left all those listening to the plight of those left at the Alpha site to hold their breath. When the whine drifted away they knew the radios were still transmitting.

John shook his head as Elizabeth nearly slumped against the rail while looking down at the Stargate. "Carter's one of the best. He'll get them back."

Weir looked at John and her eyes were full of pain. "There's only one way the Wraith…"

"Don't go there," he added.

"_We've gotta take out that dart, Will," Jennifer said._

_"Already used my last Stinger," he confessed._

_"And the armory was taken out," Jennifer said dejectedly. _

"_Yup," Carter said. "And don't risk your life again, for another soldier."_

"_He had a panic attack and might have hurt himself," Jennifer shouted angrily._

"_Your little tussle with the Lieutenant cost us three minutes," Yamamoto said. "Ten minutes until the gate closes."_

John saw Rodney shake his head and when his teammate's blue eyes met his, he saw tears reflected in them. "Fourteen minutes is a lot of time, almost a quarter..."

"This isn't football, Sheppard," Rodney snapped.

"_Okay. We gotta take out the dart," Jennifer said. "We've got no Stingers or… what about RPGs?"_

"_No," Carter replied._

_A sound of snapping fingers followed by Jennifer's voice, "Hey, what about the remote weapons' stash?" _

"_You really __**are**__ a genius," Carter replied with laughter in his voice. "Only problem, is it's ten minutes away." _

_"Ten minutes round trip isn't good enough," Keller said._

"_Five minute run," Carter replied as the sound of a zipper filled the radio. "If I'm not back in five minutes, get Keller through that gate," Will said with finality in his voice. "Whatever it takes."_

_"Oo-rah!" came the Marine's favorite cry from Yamamoto and Wilkins._

"_Godspeed, Will," Jennifer said softly._

Ford came running down the stairs from the jumper bay in full tactical gear carrying John's vest and a P90. "We're all set to go, sir."

"Good work, Lieutenant," John said, taking his vest from his 2IC.

"What's going on?" Ford asked.

_"You heard Carter," Yamamoto said. "We gotta get to the gate if he's not back in four minutes."_

"_How do we do that?" Wilkins asked._

_"I'll take Warrington," Yamamoto replied. "Doc, do you think you can guide the Lieutenant?"_

_"Yes," Jennifer replied. "Nick. Nick, we're going home."_

_"Huh?"_

"_We're going home. I just need you to follow me and we'll go through the gate. Back to Atlantis," she spoke calmly._

"_Okay," the voice of the Lieutenant almost sounded child-like._

"Sir?" Ford asked, stepping between the Major and Doctor Weir.

"They've got about…"

"Twelve minutes," Rodney said.

"Twelve minutes to get through the gate before it shuts down," John said.

_"I'll give Reed a stunner. He can do less damage if things go wrong, "Jennifer whispered. _

"_Good idea, Doc," Wilkins said. "Ever thrown a grenade?"_

_"Sure, we did it all the time in Wisconsin," she added._

_The Marines with her laughed. "I heard you were a lot of fun to be around. Glad I got a chance to go on a mission with you," Wilkins said._

_"And we'll go on many more," she added. "Just pull the pin and throw, right?"_

"_That's right," Yamamoto said. "We'll toss a couple flash bangs and then the real ones. Here's some for you."_

_"Almost counts," Jennifer mumbled._

_"What?" Wilkins asked._

_"My dad always said almost only counts in horseshoes and…"_

_"Grenades," the Marines finished for her. "That's true."_

"_It's been a pleasure, Koji," Wilkins said after a moment of silence._

_"For me too, Kyle," the older Sergeant replied._

Sheppard knew what the men were going through. Waiting for a suicide mission was harder than actually going on one. The fact that Keller was there was obviously harder on the Marines. If this goes poorly John was going to have a morale nightmare on his hands.

_"Hey, no good-byes," Jennifer said sharply._

"_Sorry, Doc," Yamamoto said. "Just something that's gotta be done."_

_"Well, not by me it doesn't," she replied._

_"We need to get ready to move. Stay close together," Koji said._

_"Oh, God," Jennifer's voice was suddenly full of fear. "I… I don't want to die." The voice they all heard was not the calm, sure one of a moment ago. This voice sounded like a terrified little girl trying not to cry._

The sound of her voice tore through John's heart as he looked to see Rodney clenching the console in a white-knuckled grip. The three scientists all looked like they were going to be ill. A silence hung over the entire control room and the lower Gateroom level.

"They'll get back. They have surprise on their side," John said, trying to believe it himself. Having two injured men and a civilian would slow down the Marines who stood a decent chance on their own.

"_Okay," Yamamoto said. "It's time to go."_

_"Oo-ray," Jennifer said weakly. "Sorry, just trying to get ready to run a suicide gauntlet. Was hoping your battle cry would toughen me up. Don't mean to get all teary eyed at the end."_

Some chuckling was heard around the room and on the radio from the Marines with the young doctor.

_"It's gotta come from your stomach, Oo-ray!" Wilkins shouted. "We'll teach you when we get back. Always knew you liked the Marines better than those flyboys."_

_"I refuse to answer that," she said. "Okay, lock and load, right?"_

"_That's right again," Yamamoto said, sounding strained. "Damn Warrington, lay off the steroids, will you?"_

_Laughter came from the other end of the radio. "It's been a pleasure guys."_

_"You too, Doctor Keller," Wilkins and Yamamoto said almost in unison. "Wilkins on our six. Doc, keep Reed close by. Let's move out."_

John and the other soldiers held their breath and listened for every sound. The boots on the ground, the heavy breathing, the release of pins on the flash bang grenades and then the gun fire. Too many voices, Keller, Wilkins, Yamamoto and even Reed, blended together, making it hard to differentiate.

Rodney had gotten out of his seat and stood next to John and Aiden, his face pale and his eyes dull. His hands were fisted and the air of defeat surrounded him. _Damn, I should have nipped this in the bud months ago. Can't have him losing it now. We need him._

"_Dart!" Jennifer screamed._

_"Run Keller! Run!" Wilkins shouted and then cried out._

_"Nick, get to the gate," Jennifer yelled before the sound of gunfire cut her _off.

Seconds later a battered looking Air Force officer collapsed through the gate onto the deck of Atlantis.

_"Keller! Get your ass through that gate!" the voice of Will Carter suddenly came back through the radio._

John felt relief only to have it dashed a second later.

_"Shit!" a drawn out cry from Yamamoto was next. "More darts!"_

"_Kyle, can you still move?" Jennifer asked._

_"Go. Go. I'm a dead man if you die trying to save me," Wilkins replied, speaking through clenched teeth._

"_Get out of here," Yamamoto yelled. "Jennifer, you can make it."_

_"Not without you guys," she shouted. "Come on Sergeant. Move."_

"What is she doing!" Rodney yelled as if he could force her to move.

John shook his head. "Jennifer's a doctor, Rodney. She just can't leave an injured person. You know that."

_Gunfire, explosions, overlapping voices and the whine of darts filled the radio waves. _

"_Get through that gate. Don't have time for more Stingers," Carter yelled._

_"Hey," Jennifer suddenly shouted._

"_You're a pain in my ass," Carter said, sounding heavily burdened._

Gunfire erupted as Chuck said from behind them, "One minute."

As soon as the Canadian spoke, Yamamoto, carrying Warrington, fell through the gate. The big Bermudan landed with a heavy thud on the floor and his rescuer rolled over to kiss the deck. Immediately after them, Carter ran through, dragging Wilkins by his tac vest in one hand and carrying Jennifer Keller under his other arm. He had his arm wrapped around her waist and bodily held her off the deck.

"Shield!" Carter screamed as he released Wilkins, who also kissed the deck.

The shield was raised and three flashes deflected off in before the gate finally shut down. Silence filled the crowd as they looked at one another in shock, hoping they each were not imagining that their buddies returned.

"I can't…" Jennifer started only to be cut off as Will Carter turned her around, grabbed her tack vest in each hand, pulled her on to her tip-toes and kissed her on the lips.

"Oh shit," John muttered.

TBC

* * *

**A/N: I'll let you imagine the fate of Sergeant Carter for a while before I inform you. **


	30. The Gift Part 2

**MGM owns all characters except OC's**

**A/N: Sorry for the delay. Other stories have gotten my muse lately.**

**Thanks Betherdy Babe as always for her beta.**

* * *

The last several days were difficult for Rodney; his realization in Heightmeyer's office left him unsettled. The physicist never thought he'd fall in love and _honestly_ had no idea what it meant. He was thankful his team discovered a secret Wraith lab to give him something concrete to deal with. Restless nights dreaming about Jennifer camping out with a bunch of horny soldiers and Peter Grodin left him exhausted and in a perpetual bad mood.

The fear he touched on with Kate a few days ago was unfolding before him and he was, once again, powerless to do anything to prevent it. While listening to the woman he _might_ be in love with fight for her life, he felt an ache fill his chest that had to be comparable to the pain of a heart attack. _Why the hell didn't I make them call Jennifer back to deal with Teyla's Wraith DNA? _

When one of Richards' Marines came through the gate carrying a dusty, dirty-faced Jennifer Keller, the pain in his chest disappeared. Now that she was delivered safely back to him, a sense of happiness filled him.

As he headed down the stairs, the brief moment of joy was replaced by confusion and then a blinding jealousy. The sight of another man holding her _off the ground_ to kiss her caused him to clench his fists and run to the gate. Rodney's eyes focused only on Sergeant Carter and the woman he couldn't stop dreaming about. _That son-of-a-bitch, I'll kill him._

"Oh shit," John shouted when Rodney took off. "McKay!"

The kiss was brief because Jennifer pushed Carter away, staggering back after he released her vest. Silence filled the Gateroom. The idea that someone would _kiss_ Jennifer Keller in front of the likes of Gunnery Sergeant Richards or Major Sheppard was inconceivable.

"Gross! What the hell did you do that for?" Jennifer shouted as she swiped her sleeve over her mouth.

"Gross?" Carter laughed. "I haven't had a woman tell me my kissing was gross since I was twelve."

"Don't… ever… do that… again," Jennifer snapped as she punctuated each word by punching the Marine in the upper arm.

"Doc, calm down," Carter said laughing. "I thought we were as good as dead."

"If you wanted to die, Carter, you should have stayed behind," Yamamoto said as he moved between them.

"You'll wish you were dead," she said. "If you think you've had painful exams before…"

"Carter!" A harsh shout shut everyone up.

"Gunny, come on. I know we all would've been dead if Jennifer wasn't with us," Carter pleaded.

Richards positioned himself inches from Carter's face. The icy glare would cause any man to shrink, but Will Carter didn't shrink. He did shift his footing ever so slightly as if preparing for an attack.

Rodney allowed himself a smirk. _I'll let Richards kill him instead._ The physicist was still making his way between the soldiers near the gate with Sheppard, Heightmeyer and Weir on his heels.

"Report to the infirmary for an evaluation, Sergeant Carter," a voice that sounded colder and angrier than Richards' echoed through the room.

Rodney furrowed his brow as he saw Sergeant Bates step up to Jennifer. _I didn't think Bates liked Jennifer. _He noticed the Head of Security place a hand on her arm and pull her gently away from Richards and Carter.

"I think you need to go to the infirmary too, Doctor Keller," Bates said.

Rodney was finally close enough to see Jennifer clearly and had to agree with Bates. Her hair was half out of its ponytail, hiding much of her face from a distance, but now that he was steps away he saw a bruise forming on her cheek.

Rodney reached out and took her arm, causing her to jump. Seeing her brown eyes widen and then her shoulders sag after she acknowledged his presence with a slight smile set the physicist into action.

"I'll get Doctor Keller to the infirmary," he stated, tightening his grip around her arm and directing her toward the corridor.

"Wait," she said, turning back. "Reed, Wilkins and Warrington need…"

"Your people will deal with them," Rodney said without looking back. The tug on her arm became a pull as the young doctor was forced to follow the scientist down the steps.

"Rodney," Jennifer said as she fell into step alongside him. "Please slow down."

"Not until I make sure you're okay," he said, staring straight ahead.

Seeing the infirmary before them, Rodney's brain shut down. Walking past the main entrance where several soldiers from the first evacuation were being treated, the physicist opened an isolation lab and pulled Jennifer inside.

"Rodney," Jennifer sighed, throwing her arms around his shoulders and pressing her face into his shoulder. "I've never been so scared."

"I know. Me too," he admitted without thinking. He slid his hands up her back and then moved them around to frame her face and tilt it back so he could see her eyes.

Tears left tracks in the dust on her cheeks. "The Wraith attack happened so fast I-I couldn't be afraid. T-this time… we-we were w-w-waiting to d-die," the physician stammered and finally gave in, sobbing in Rodney's arms.

The astrophysicist leaned down and kissed her. He told himself it was to distract her from the terror she just endured, but his real reason was to wash away the Marine's taste from her sweet lips. Jennifer was _his_: _he_ shared her first kiss, _he_ took care of her after the Wraith attack and the death of so many of her friends and _he_ would be the first and only man to make love to her.

Any self-control or rational thought the physicist had left flew away when Jennifer returned the kiss. Moving his hands down he encountered her tac vest and removed it, dropping it to the floor.

* * *

Jennifer's fantasies were coming true barely ten minutes after returning to Atlantis. Rodney was kissing her, passionately. His lips devoured hers and any attempt to pull back for air was stopped as his arms trapped her in his embrace. The fierce way he kissed her and pulled off her vest sent a wave of uncertainty through the inexperienced woman. She dismissed it quickly as his hand slid up her back and buried itself in her hair, tugging the elastic out and angling her head so his tongue could claim entry to her mouth.

After the surprise kiss by Will Carter in the Gateroom, Jennifer had been extremely upset. The logical part of her brain said it was stress release for the Marine and she should brush it off, but she still resented the intrusion. The only man she wanted to kiss was on his way down from the control room and at the time, she wasn't positive of his feelings for her. This kiss erased any doubt from Jennifer's mind.

The look in Rodney's eyes when she said how frightened she'd been was similar to a look she'd seen long ago when Robert Keller came rushing into a hospital room to kiss her mother's hand after their car accident. Rodney cared about her and had just nearly lost her. The pain and relief reflected in his baby blue eyes touched her heart. _I won't ever doubt him again._

She was aware of being moved backwards while Rodney's hand slid on the small of her back and held her firmly to him. The possessive onslaught of his lips kept her from paying too much attention to anything but their physical contact until she felt the wall behind her.

"McKay!" she faintly heard coming from Rodney's radio. The hand in her hair left for a moment before returning to trace her ear and remove her radio.

His lips left hers for a second but returned before she could say a word or get much of a breath. The same intensity drove this kiss as the last one. It was as if Rodney had been suffocating and she was a fresh oxygen supply.

The hand in her hair slid down her back and hit a particularly tender spot on her spine where she encountered a rock after being knocked down by Warrington. Unable to hold in her cry of pain, she felt Rodney freeze. When his lips pulled away from hers, she opened her eyes and tried to tug him back. "Please don't stop. It's just a bruise."

"A bruise?" Rodney asked. "How many _bruises_ do you have?" His hand left her waist and his fingers gently touched the bruise on her left cheek.

"I got knocked down three or four times. Warrington fell on me and he's over two hundred pounds," Jennifer explained. She was desperate for Rodney's kisses again and leaned up on tiptoes to press her lips to his.

He pulled away and quickly spun her around. "What are you…" She stopped speaking and thinking as she felt her shirt being yanked up. "Rodney!"

"Oh my God," Rodney breathed as he looked at her nearly naked back.

"Rodney, please. W-what are you doing?" Jennifer gasped. The cool air and the knowledge that Rodney started _removing_ her clothing sent a shudder through her body.

"You… you might have cracked ribs or something." Rodney's voice sounded strained. "Come on," he said as he put her shirt back down and slid an arm around her waist.

"Rodney, what are you doing?" Jennifer found herself being moved toward the door, which opened into the bright corridor. A flush rose over her cheeks as she realized what she must look like: dirty face with tear tracks, swollen lips from the intense kissing, hair messed up, shirt untucked. _You look like you were making out, which you were._

"Hey," Rodney yelled when Marie came out of a room. "Jennifer's been injured and needs to go under a scanner immediately." His tone left no room for discussion.

"Of course," Marie said, not batting an eye at Jennifer's appearance. "This way, Jennifer."

Jennifer glanced at Rodney as Marie guided her to an examination room; his eyes were full of pain. It made her heart ache as she smiled.

Rodney offered a tight smile in return. "I'll see you later."

* * *

"McKay!" Sheppard's voice echoed down the corridor. The Major waited until Marie had taken Jennifer into a room before he made his presence known. Rodney and Jennifer had come out of an isolation room and it was _very_ obvious to John what they'd been doing. "McKay!" he shouted again as Rodney stared after Jennifer.

The physicist turned with a look of annoyance, which quickly gave way to guilt.

_Son of a bitch, I really don't need this now_. "In here. Now!" he snapped harshly, pointing back to the same room.

Rodney's Adam's apple bobbed, but the physicist walked tall as he passed his team leader and entered the dim room he'd just vacated with Jennifer.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?" John asked incredulously.

"I…"

"Rodney, we're gonna be attacked by the Wraith," John shouted. "What were you…" the Major stopped speaking when he saw Jennifer's vest on the floor. "Oh you've got to be kidding me?"

"I couldn't think, okay. She was gonna die and then she was here. And then that _damn _Marine kissed her," Rodney ranted. "Why the hell don't you give him a hard time? I know you and Richards…"

"Because he didn't drag her off, strip her clothing and…" John paused and took a deep breath.

"I didn't strip…"

"Shut up!" John yelled. "I don't wanna hear it. Listen… I'm talking as your team leader and the second in command of this expedition…"

"Hey, I think I'm second in command after Elizabeth," Rodney whined. "I've been with the SGC longer than her."

John's glare shut him up. The Major felt like a bastard, but knew he needed to do what was best for the mission. "You absolutely cannot have a relationship with Jennifer Keller. That's my _official_ stance."

"You can't tell me..."

"I'm not finished," John barked. He took another deep breath and let out a long sigh. "Listen, Rodney, as your friend I realize Jennifer has to be a dream come true for you: fun to be around, incredibly intelligence, kind and compassionate, beautiful."

"I'm your friend?" Rodney asked.

John had to pause a moment when he met Rodney's gaze. A look of total surprise and then pride filled his teammate's face. The jaded soldier often forgot that McKay and Keller had more in common than high IQs: neither had been part of a team nor accepted for who they were before. "Yes, Rodney. Somehow in all this… insanity we've found ourselves in, I've come to think of you as a friend."

A true grin spread over Rodney's face. "Really?"

"Yes, but if you ever mention it to anyone or me again, I'll deny it," John said, but couldn't keep the brief smile off his lips.

"Mum's the word," Rodney said still smiling.

"Back to Jennifer."

"No need to say it, John. I know. I need to focus on saving all of us," Rodney replied. "If I save Atlantis, I'll keep Jennifer safe."

"Exactly. Now why don't you go figure out how to save us," John said. "I gotta debrief with everyone."

"Jennifer got hurt, John," Rodney said, all the happiness at finding out John was his friend had left his face and pain filled his voice. "She's got bruises all over her back."

"I know she did, Rodney. I know." John couldn't keep the sadness from his voice. "She's my friend too, you know. But it won't happen again."

"We can't protect her all the time," Rodney stated.

"You didn't notice what happened in that Gateroom, did you?" John asked.

"What are you talking about?"

"Those Marines would have died for Jennifer in the past, but now…" John smiled and shook his head. "After what she did out there, they'll take a number to jump in front of danger to protect her. I don't think Carter needs to fear _only_ Richards. Any one of those guys will kick his ass every chance they get."

"As long as they only want to _die_ for her," Rodney said jealously lacing his words.

John laughed. "Remember what we talked about, Rodney? No time for girlfriends."

Rodney glared at him, picked up his and Jennifer's radios from the floor and walked out the door ahead of the Major.

Once in the corridor Rodney paused, making John almost run into him before seeing Bates, Richards and Carter. The more senior Sergeants were flanking Carter, who looked like he'd had a new one ripped out.

"Major," Bates said. "We're ready for debriefing, but I'd like to suggest we wait for Doctor Keller to be cleared."

"How bad is she?" John asked as he noticed the icy glare McKay was giving Carter. _Better get him out of here fast, not sure Carter's got as much self-control as Richards._

"Captain Cole is with her, sir," Bates replied. "Bumps and bruises only from what we hear."

"She's a rotten patient, so it won't take long for them to release her," John chuckled.

"Sir," Carter said, finally meeting John's eyes. "I'd like the chance to apologize to Doctor Keller in private when she's released, if you don't mind?"

With a speed that shocked all the veteran soldiers in the corridor, and probably the physicist himself, Rodney's fist slammed into the jaw of Sergeant Carter.

The big Marine took the punch and didn't even flinch. "I'm sorry, Doctor McKay. I know you look out for Doctor Keller and I want you to know I won't do anything like that ever again. We all would have been dead if Jennifer wasn't with us. No way Gunny would've left the gate open, knowing Wraith could get through, to save only us jarheads. She saved our lives."

Rodney continued to glare and didn't show any sign of pain from the punch, which John imagined had to be severe. The physicist looked at John briefly and turned to go without a word. The Major watched him leave and turned back to his men.

"Damn, where'd he learn to throw a punch?" Carter finally said, rubbing his jaw.

"Suck it up, Marine," Richards said coldly.

John couldn't help but laugh.

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: I'll try not to take so long on future updates. This chapter really does change a lot of feelings so it took some time.**


	31. Siege Part 1

**MGM owns all characters except OCs**

**A/N: I cannot believe I've reached the Siege saga. Thanks for the reviews and alerts and favorites. I never thought I'd hit the end of Season 1 and have so many people following the story. You guys make me keep going with this. Thanks Betherdy Babe and dwparsnip for the beta work.**

* * *

If someone told Jennifer yesterday that telepathic abilities existed, she would have laughed. It wasn't that she didn't believe impossible things occurred, finding out you can travel through space and time as well as meet aliens would have erased her skepticism if she'd had any. The physician had studied the brain extensively during her second PhD though and nothing in her analysis or grasp of the subject could prepare her for the fact that thoughts could be transmitted like pheromones. The genius could not stop studying the information or fretting over what affects Teyla's _possession_ by a Wraith could have done to her.

"Jennifer?" Carson's voice pulled her out of her analysis of the autopsy information from Steve all those months ago.

Jennifer felt herself tense. The flood of emotions going through her at the sound of her mentor's voice threatened to overwhelm her exhausted mind. The past ten hours she had been with Teyla, running tests and analyzing data. Her disappointment with Carson was pushed out of her mind, but she knew she'd have to deal with it.

"I'm just finishing up and heading to the briefing," she said coldly, hoping to buy herself more time before confronting her oldest friend. The young woman realized she was acting childishly, but her disappointment with the fact that he let Heightmeyer play around with Teyla's mind and not contact her was something she couldn't dismiss. Teyla was involved and lives most likely lost because of it.

"I was hoping we could finish our conversation," Carson said.

Jennifer had stormed out of his office earlier when he tried to explain what happened with Teyla. Looking up now, she saw immense pain in his blue eyes. The physician took a deep breath and got up. "Carson, I don't really have much to say. As I said before, I don't dare think that my limited experience in the field could measure up to your wealth of knowledge, but…" Jennifer paused to collect her thoughts and not lose her temper. "You and I both know that one of the reasons you recruited me was to be your partner. To bounce ideas and theories off of…"

"Aye, I want you to argue with me and disagree with me," he paused, shaking his head, "Since we've gotten here I've been overwhelmed with the information we've found. I got self absorbed and forgot I had someone to turn to."

"It's happened to us all," Jennifer offered, glancing past Carson to see Bates and Richards standing in the corridor waiting for them. "We really need to get going or we'll be late."

"I'm so sorry, love. Bates was right. I should have contacted you immediately when we discovered this possible neural network. You've got the degree in neuroscience and did a rotation with a neurosurgeon." Carson looked like he might cry. "There was absolutely no reason for me not to have you recalled. I…"

"Carson, please. Drop it," she interrupted, not wanting this to turn into something bigger. "We don't have time for this. Whatever Teyla saw got Rodney going and I'd like to find out what he comes up with."

"But, Jennifer…" Carson stepped between her and the door. "You could have been killed. Radek said they heard… heard you preparing to die in the control room. He said he'd never felt so helpless, so sick in his life. _I _caused that. The two times I've gotten caught up in research, I've almost gotten you killed. I owe you so much more than an apology."

"I chose to go in the cell with that Wraith while you were on Hoff. Gunny and Rodney were dead set against it, but _I _did it," Jennifer said angrily, pointing at herself. "And Teyla wanted to try to connect with the Wraith. Should you have called me back before you let Heightmeyer mess around with her… Absolutely. We're lucky there doesn't seem to be any brain damage. So the way I see it, she's the one you need to apologize to." The young woman brushed past Carson to join the soldiers. The emotions were too raw at the moment.

Carson grabbed her arm as she passed. "Please…"

Realizing she had one last piece to say, she took a deep breath to steady her racing heart and spoke, "Do you remember how it felt the first time your parents let you down? The first time you realized they weren't perfect?"

Carson visibly trembled. "Aye." He released her arm as his eyes lost their normally vibrant shine.

"I never experienced that feeling… until now."

Once in the corridor Jennifer squeezed her eyes shut to keep from crying. _You love him almost as much as your dad. He feels terrible about what happened._ _You have to let it go._ Jennifer was honestly too exhausted and strung out to think clearly. The aftermath of the near death she lived through was locked behind a wall waiting to come out if she let it. Knowing the Wraith could be there in a few days meant she had no time to cry on Rodney's shoulder so she held it in. The loss of more lives and her inability to prevent any of it made her both angry and afraid.

"Doctor Keller," Sergeant Bates' voice pulled her out of her thoughts. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she answered as they walked toward the transporter.

* * *

In the conference room Jennifer settled between Bates and Zelenka, keeping the Czech between her and Carson, as they waited for Rodney to begin. The change in the way Sergeant Keith Bates treated Jennifer was pronounced and obvious. If any good came from this fiasco it was that fact. The head of security took it as his personal mission now to defend Jennifer and that defense included her position as _the smartest doctor on Atlantis. _It was what Bates called her when he fought with Weir, Carson and Sheppard for not calling her back to deal with the situation. Teyla most likely passed the information to the Wraith during her psychic connection that led them to the Alpha Site, killing four Marines and endangering her and the others. How the connection happened still baffled Jennifer; the distance between Atlantis and the Wraith was still astronomical and a simple brainwave shouldn't be able to travel that far no matter how alien. As Rodney always said the laws of physics cannot be erased because they were in a different galaxy.

Not one to beat around the bush, Rodney started right in once everyone was seated. "Not only has Teyla been able to ascertain that the Wraith are more interested in Earth than Atlantis, which is... you know, terrifying, she realized that the hive ships will go right past the only surviving LaGrange point satellite."

_That's why he flew out of the infirmary like a mad man._ Jennifer had to smile at the way a simple star chart that Teyla had him pull up on his laptop managed to lead him to some plan involving the satellite.

The two had no time to talk without having an audience since their kiss in the Infirmary ten hours earlier. Several butterflies zipped around in her stomach when he began to speak. The sound of his voice with all his unbridled emotions always on display made Jennifer feel warm all over.

"The last of what we assume were dozens of defense satellites destroyed during the Ancients' last stand with the Wraith," Radek interjected.

Jennifer had to hold in a laugh at the Czech's lack of fear when it came to needling his department head. Radek Zelenka was like a crazy uncle who spoke his mind no matter what. He was one of her favorite people without a doubt.

Rodney glared at Radek, annoyed at being interrupted, "Yes, yes, yes-- the point is, we think we can use it to our advantage."

"I thought you said it was dead," John spoke from his seat near Rodney's presentation.

"It is, but we think we've learned enough about how it works to bring it back," Rodney stated.

"If we are right about what is wrong with it," Zelenka added.

"Yes, of course if we're right about what's wrong with it. But if we're right, and it's just out of power, the Wraith have simply been ignoring it," Rodney said.

"Our preliminary estimates indicate a single naqahdah generator would be enough to bring it back online," Zelenka explained.

Jennifer sat up straighter in her chair. If they could get the satellite working, based on what Rodney told her about it, it would be a huge advantage. More good to come from Teyla's foray into the Wraiths' conscious.

"Why can't we use our generators to get the weapons systems of Atlantis working?" Ford asked.

"Because those systems were designed to be powered by the Zero Point Module and the satellite isn't," the Czech engineer explained.

"And you think it's powerful enough to take out a Wraith hive ship?" John asked.

"According to the Ancient database, it should be able to take out all three when fully charged. Keep in mind that the Ancient technology was far superior they only lost the war because they were vastly outnumbered," Rodney replied smugly.

"Well, we're vastly outnumbered," John reminded the physicist.

"And outgunned," Bates chimed in from Jennifer's right.

"But they don't see the satellite as threat," Radek said smiling.

"In military parlance, surprise... is an element on our side," Rodney deflated and Jennifer offered him an understanding smile as he messed up the saying.

"What do you need?" Elizabeth asked.

"The satellite's fifteen hours away by puddle jumper, I recommend that we put together a small crew, say myself, Grodin and a pilot," Rodney said.

Jennifer suddenly felt her heart stop. Fear coursed through her at the idea of Rodney, Peter and John in a tiny jumper so far from the safety of Atlantis as a Wraith fleet bore down on them.

"I'll go," John said, confirming Jennifer's fear that three of her closest friends would be in harm's way.

"No, Miller can handle it, Major. I need you to keep searching for alternate Alpha sites with Bates and Keller, just in case this fails," Weir said.

A brief moment of relief went through Jennifer; extremely brief because the most important person in her life at the moment was still going and without the best pilot on the base.

"The hive ships will be in range of the satellite in forty-nine hours. We're gonna need every last second of that time," he stated.

Elizabeth looked around the room. "Questions? Okay, let's get on it," she said, dismissing everyone with her words.

Jennifer remained in her seat for a moment as the realization that once again she needed to prepare for an evacuation and the desire to not let Rodney go without saying goodbye passed through her head.

"Well, Rodney, I don't mean to put any undue pressure, but at this moment, that satellite is the only thing standing between the Wraith and Atlantis," Elizabeth said as she turned to leave.

"No undue pressure," John said as well.

They stared at each other across the room after everyone left. Once the doors sealed it was as if the privacy unleashed something Jennifer kept caged up. Before she realized what she did, she got up, moved around the table and stood in front of Rodney.

The physicist smiled weakly. "At least we know what they're up to."

"Yes," Jennifer nodded. "But at a terrible price."

"How are you? I'm sorry I haven't been around for a while. I needed to pull all the data we had on the satellite together," Rodney said, reaching out tentatively to brush a loose lock of hair behind her ear.

She felt a blush move over her cheeks as she remembered being in his arms ten hours ago. "I knew you were gonna to find a way to save the day."

Rodney's eyes widened and a _real_ smile spread over his lips. His hand had slowly slid down her neck and rested on her shoulder while his other hand reached out to touch her waist. "We really shouldn't be doing this," he said quietly as if telling himself.

Jennifer's arms immediately wrapped around his waist and she moved closer to him. "I know. If we get caught…"

Her words were cut off as Rodney's lips claimed hers. The kiss was soft and sweet compared to the last one. All the fear and disappointment she'd been feeling recently seemed to wash away as hope filled her via the kiss. There was no way she'd finally meet the man of her dreams and he'd die. It just wasn't going to happen.

As a whimper rose in her throat, Rodney reluctantly pulled back so he could look into her eyes.

"Be careful," Jennifer breathed. "Peter's bad luck when he goes off world."

The physicist laughed suddenly and pulled her head to his chest, gently wrapping his arms around her. "Really, I didn't know that."

Spending so much time with Rodney allowed Jennifer an insight into his words and actions few, if any, people ever had in his life. It was obvious to her there was a joke in there at her expense. Considering how carefully he held her so as not to hurt her back, she bit back the nasty retort she had planned. "Yes, I've been off world with him twice and look at what happened." The chuckling continued under her ear so she pushed back. "What?"

"Nothing," he said, guiltily. "You better get out there or your new attack dog will be in here to skin me alive."

"Nah, Gunny's with him and he likes you," she said, looking at the door.

"How do you know that?" Rodney asked.

"Because he knows everything that goes on around here."

"So?"

"Rodney, I spent the night in your quarters, remember?"

"I hope you were discrete when you left," Rodney's eyes widened.

"Yes, but I'm sure Gunny knew about it. If he didn't kill you then, he won't now," Jennifer said.

Rodney's Adam's apple bobbed as he suddenly looked sick. "Right."

"We better go," she said dejectedly.

"I've got a lot of stuff to get," Rodney said, turning her but keeping one arm around her shoulders as they moved to the table to grab their computers.

"I mean it about being careful," she said. "Miller's probably the second best pilot, but I'd feel better if John was with you."

"If we can't fix it, we'll come right back," Rodney reassured her.

"Promise," she looked up with the pinpricks of pending tears in her eyes.

"I promise, I'll come back," he said and leaned down to steal one more kiss.

* * *

Outside the conference room, Gunnery Sergeant Richards and Sergeant Bates waited for Jennifer to emerge.

"I though you were gonna kill Carter in the gym with those sticks earlier," Bates said.

"They're called bantos, not sticks," Gunny corrected, his grey eyes surveying the control room and Gateroom from their position on the walkway.

"Whatever," Bates said. "How can you possibly be okay with this? I mean McKay is the biggest pain in the ass in two galaxies on a good day."

Richards glanced at Bates and then returned to surveying their surroundings with his eyes.

"Do you honestly think McKay and Keller are good for each other? Not to mention what it's gonna do to the expedition," Bates said.

The big Marine continued to wait patiently.

"McKay?" Bates said one last time incredulously. "What could they possibly have in common?"

"What can I say, I'm a hopeless romantic," Richards finally spoke.

When Jennifer and Rodney emerged from the conference room with red faces, they saw the head of security doubled over with laughter while Richards stood stoically next to him.

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the bit of fluff, but we've got nonstop action coming up.**


	32. Siege Part 2

**A/N: Thanks for the positive feedback and the continuous alerts and favorites. This chapter really begins the **_**Butterfly Effect**_** I've created with the addition of Jennifer and Richards and some of the events I've added. Certain things have to change because of it. This is just the beginning so hang on.**

**Thanks Betherdy Babe for her beta once again.**

* * *

When John entered Teyla's room, nodding to Sergeant Warrington in the corridor, he saw Jennifer Keller sitting next to Teyla's bed hunched over her computer. "Hello..."

"I am fine," Teyla said, cutting him off and sounding exasperated.

"I'm looking for something a little more enthusiastic than _fine_," John said, raising an eyebrow at Teyla's obvious annoyance with Jennifer. The physician didn't seem to acknowledge his presence. _And I thought McKay got engrossed in his work._ He decided to stand there and see how long it took for her to notice him.

"I am ready to be put back on active duty," Teyla stated, unconcerned that her doctor was ignoring them.

"I'm sure you think so but, uh..." John paused as his eyes flashed between the back of Jennifer's motionless head and Teyla's brown eyes.

"Doctor Keller, please tell him I am fine," the Athosian said.

Without turning or moving her head, Jennifer replied, "She is, Major. I see no further reason she should be kept here under medical supervision."

"But you're sitting at her bedside pouring over something I assume is related to my team member's condition," John said, moving to lean against the wall next to her in the hopes that she'd look at him.

The move was successful as tawny eyes connected with his. John was immediately concerned by the look of pure exhaustion on the young physician's face. "When's the last time you've slept?"

"I don't remember. But doubt I've had a real night's sleep in weeks," Jennifer said. "I look that bad, huh?"

"Um, well," John muttered. "You kinda look like you're gonna pass out."

"No, I'm not. I can't sleep because this _whole_ thing doesn't make any sense to me," she said as she pushed her tablet across the table top.

"Why don't you let a fresh set of eyes look at it?" John asked.

"Because I have more experience than any other physician when it comes to this stuff," the girl from Wisconsin said.

"Okay. I've heard enough. I'm ordering Gunny to never let you within fifty feet of McKay again. He's obviously corrupting our sweet little farm girl," John said. Realizing his mistake at mentioning the physicist, he took a breath and prepared to provide damage control.

"Have you heard anything?" Jennifer asked, trying to look nonchalant about the inquiry. She suddenly stood up and moved around the table to disconnect a monitor from Teyla, never taking her eyes off John, however.

"They got to the satellite," he said, hoping Jennifer was not losing sleep because of Rodney. "Next report in six hours, I believe."

"That's good," she said, concentrating on wrapping up cables with great precision.

"So, what's got you confused?" Ford asked from his position near the door. The Lieutenant had been leaning against the door jam as the others spoke. He was apparently taking to heart what John and Richards were trying to teach him about observing others.

"I can't talk about a patient's condition with…"

"I do not mind, Jennifer," Teyla said. "Perhaps together we can sort this out. Do you not have a saying about multiple heads being better than one?"

"Two heads," John clarified. "So four… _should be_ even better."

Jennifer looked at them and let out a long sigh. "I've been going over Steve's autopsy results. The Wraith brain does have specialized cells in the region of the brain that humans use to control speech and also in the section for memory." The physician closed her eyes for a moment, gathering her thoughts.

"And Teyla…" John hoped to prompt her to complete her thoughts

"Has the same cells but at a _much_ lower concentration," she said. "I can't see with any scientific reasoning how she could connect to the Wraith but Steve couldn't."

"They're closer now," Ford said.

"But light years from the solar system still," Jennifer replied.

She waved her hands in the air and John swore she was going to rant like Rodney, but fell silent. _Guess he hasn't rubbed off on her too much._ "Maybe thoughts travel faster than…" John trailed off, as he didn't know what to compare it too.

"As Rodney's said since we got here, you can't suspend the laws of physics just because you're in a new galaxy," Jennifer said.

"There are so many Wraith awake, perhaps that has something to do with it," Teyla offered as she got off the bed and stretched. "It feels much better to be standing once again."

"I'm sorry to keep you here for so long," Jennifer said to the Athosian. "We're just trying to be certain the Wraith won't take control of you again."

"I am certain, I must initiate the contact," Teyla replied.

John watched Jennifer nod unconfidently and couldn't help but notice her flinch._ Rodney said she got hurt. It must be worse than I thought. _"Listen, you need to get some rest, Doc. You won't be able to do much if you're exhausted."

"My boss ordered me to rest a few hours ago and I'll tell you what I told him," she said. "I… I just can't sleep."

"Well try," John said unable to mask the real concern in his voice. "For me?"

Jennifer looked at him and for a moment he was terrified she was going to hug him.

Instead, she saluted and snapped, "Yes, _sir_."

John and his remaining teammates laughed.

* * *

Jennifer felt eyes burning into her as she took the last bite of her beef stew. "There. I've eaten, if you can call MREs food. Are you happy now?"

"Ecstatic," came the dry response of Gunnery Sergeant Richards.

"You're getting to be a royal pain, do you know that?" she said, turning to face the Marine, who stood in the doorway of her office with his P90 dangling from its clip.

"Wouldn't be doing my job if I wasn't," he said. "Now we can discuss the evacuation."

"My favorite topic," she said sarcastically. It had been almost two days since Rodney left. Two sleepless nights worrying about him, the last spent on a cot she hid behind some cabinets in the corner of her office.

The last shuttle of Athosians arrived that morning and now everyone was awaiting news from Rodney at the satellite. Elizabeth didn't want to run the risk of what happened the last time, so no one went ahead to the Alpha Site. It left Jennifer and her team to plan everything on the computer and over table top discussions.

Richards pulled up a seat next to her desk as she opened the latest plans on her computer. Bates, who normally joined them, was performing security details to ease his paranoia, which had increased exponentially after Teyla's possession by the Wraith. Jennifer couldn't really blame him, as she was just as shocked with the situation. His departure left the two mid-Westerners to work on the plan together.

Looking closely at the man who seemed to always be watching over her, she noticed lines around his eyes. "Have you been sleeping, Gunny?"

Gray eyes moved from the screen to meet her own. The normally blank face of Dwayne Richards conveyed an emotion that was easily read, _concern._ "What is it?" Fear gripped the young woman as she turned to fully face him.

"Something's not right," he confided.

The fact that he actually responded shocked her so much that she sat with an open mouth for several seconds. "I've been feeling that too. Of course my reason is that I can't explain how Teyla could have connected to a hive ship that is days away..."

"Doctor Keller," Chuck's voice came over her earwig, stopping her words. "Medical emergency at generator station one. There's been an attack."

"Attack?" she exclaimed as she jumped up.

Richards had gotten to his feet as well, obviously listening to his own radio. "On my way, sir. Doctor Keller's with me."

"What's going on?" Jennifer asked.

"Not sure," he replied, nodding toward the door.

The fact that the Marine was uncertain terrified Jennifer, but she couldn't dwell on her emotions. _Someone is injured._ Calling the trauma team on duty and assembling supplies occupied her for the next few minutes.

* * *

Gunnery Sergeant Dwayne Richards had waited for battle many times in his life. As a very young Marine barely out of boot camp, he spent several days sitting in a hole waiting for a fight to come to him. The adrenaline rush followed by the waiting was as old to him as breathing. But this was different. Yes, this enemy was worse than any he'd faced before, but that shouldn't make him feel… _unsettled_. Perhaps it was all the innocent civilians, he'd never had so many non-combatants under his immediate care when faced with seemingly insurmountable odds. _That must be it. _People like Keller, McKay, Zelenka, Grodin, Weir; they're the kind of people the Marine fought for from the other side of the galaxy, not by their sides.

"Gunny," Sheppard called as he came up the corridor to intercept the Marine and Doctor Keller. "Jennifer," the Major said, nodding at the young woman at Richards' side.

"What happened, John?" she asked, fear leaking into her voice. The professional mask of a doctor was in place, but the terrified young woman underneath still shone through to Gunny's observant eyes.

"Bates was attacked," Sheppard's explained.

"No," Jennifer gasped.

_Dammit, I knew something was wrong._ Richards hated being right and hated it more when there wasn't anything he could've done differently to prevent the bad thing from happening. He'd lived long enough to know he wasn't _Superman_ or even close. "How badly, sir?"

"Looks pretty bad," John said as Jennifer rushed past him.

Knowing that she appreciated Bates' sudden warmth toward her, made watching her try to put on her professional face even harder. Before Richards could ask Sheppard what steps he took to secure the city, the Major started talking.

"Gunny, I know we've had this conversation before, but I can't think of anyone else I want running security around here. Especially now," Sheppard said, his hazel eyes drilling into Dwayne's grey ones.

"I have to agree, sir." Richards knew that whatever they were going to face, his Black Ops training would be invaluable.

* * *

Several hours later in the infirmary Richards, Ford and Sheppard were discussing the argument and ensuing fight between Teyla and Bates.

Gunny shook his head after Ford suggested Teyla attacked Bates. "If Teyla were possessed by a Wraith, it would only control her body. I've fought Teyla and Bates, sir. I don't believe she could physically do this level of damage to him."

"His skull is cracked." Jennifer's voice sounded from behind the soldiers so they quickly turned to see her approach. "It was slammed, repeatedly into the wall."

"Forensics team got anymore, Doc?" Sheppard asked.

"If Carson and Doctor Biro make up a forensics team." Jennifer mustered a partial smile with her comment. "They've found blood on the wall near the naquadah generator and are currently analyzing his clothing of anything from the attacker."

Richards' heart truly felt for the young doctor. She was trying to hold it together as her friends and the world fell apart around her. This latest attack kept her barely a few feet away from Bates at all times. She and Carson worked side-by side when the Sergeant was brought back to the infirmary to stabilize and treat him, but her internship with a neurosurgeon made her the expert to treat his injury, so Beckett was running the forensics investigation and Jennifer was taking care of Bates.

"Well, I gotta question Teyla," John said reluctantly. "Let me know as soon as you guys find out anything further about who did this."

* * *

After Ford and Sheppard left them alone, the young woman slumped against an empty infirmary bed.

"You can't help anyone…" Dwayne began.

"If you don't take care of yourself," she finished. "Thanks, _Dad_."

"I'm sure your father is a fine man so I'll take that as a compliment," Richards replied.

"He'd love you," she said with a smile.

Richards stepped closer in case she lost all her strength and collapsed again. "Will you tell me how long it's been since you've slept?"

Jennifer looked at him, narrowed her eyes and changed the subject. "Teyla couldn't do this, Gunny."

"I know, but she's the most likely suspect. The Major has to question her."

"So you don't believe it, do you?" Jennifer stood up straighter and crossed her arms.

"No," Richards said. "Are there any other Athosians who can sense the Wraith?"

"Oh my God," Jennifer's eyes widened as she exclaimed. "Yes. Several. Oh why didn't I think of that? I know Teyla says she needs to connect first, but what if that's not true? What if Steve was just an idiot Wraith or he didn't know about humans sensing Wraith or how to take control of them?" The young physician began moving around with hands shaking and flying through the air. "Oh, Gunny… Kanaan is one them."

Richards had fought the big Athosian several times and knew Kanaan could most definitely knock Bates around. "Don't blame yourself. We all should have thought of it." He started walking out of the infirmary with Jennifer trailing behind.

"I just can't get my mind around this whole neural network… _thing_," Jennifer said. "It's incomprehensible to me that Wraith light years away could be doing this."

Richards suddenly stopped. "What if there's a scout ship? Something closer than the fleet." He turned to face a wide-eyed expression on Jennifer's face.

"Oh my God," her voice cracked and terror covered her face. Before she said a word to him, her hand flew to her earwig and she shouted. "Radek, meet me in the control room! Keller out."

The veteran soldier had been around Atlantis' geniuses long enough to know that the slightest word could generate a new idea that would save them all so he patiently waiting for her to explain.

Looking at him, her face had a look of shame on her pretty features. "There was a scout ship, Gunny. Remember?"

Suddenly it all clicked in Richards' mind: his sense of paranoia of late, the attack on the Alpha Site, Teyla's possession, Bates' attack, all of it. "Oh shit. Sergeant Campbell?" he barked into his earwig as he pulled his P90 up and began to look carefully around the corridor.

"Go ahead," the Canadian technician said.

"Give me All Security on the VOX," Richards said. He looked down into the brown eyes of Doctor Keller and said quietly, "Glad one of us is a genius."

The physician mustered another partial smile. "Don't get so cocky."

"Go ahead," Chuck said.

"The White Rabbit's in Wonderland. Repeat, the White Rabbit's in Wonderland." It didn't take five seconds for Sheppard's voice to come back. "What are you talking…"

"I'll meet you in the control room, sir. Richards out."

"Gunny, what was that about?" Jennifer asked as he motioned for her to stay close and they headed toward the security detail at the end of the corridor.

"Just told my teams there might be a Wraith on Atlantis."

"A White Rabbit?" she asked, furrowing her brow as she almost ran to keep up with his longer gate.

"They're white… sort of."

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: I realize characters might seem a bit more **_**OOC**_** than normal so I wanted to remind everyone that as far as the story timeline goes there are only two weeks from the end of **_**Brotherhood**_** to **_**Siege**_**. Very short, intense time for everyone so they are all strung out. **

**And finally this is not an endorsement of the new **_**Alice in Wonderland**_** movie, which I have not seen. Honestly couldn't think up another code phrase without delaying this chapter any longer.**


	33. Siege Part 3

**A/N: Based on feedback I have inserted a Rodney scene in the beginning of this chapter even though nothing changes in Rodney's part of **_**The Siege**_** in my 'verse. Awesome episode! **

**Yes, Butterfly Effect going strong now.  
**

**Thanks to all the readers and especially Betherdy Babe who deals with my constant angst over how I'm going to get this story where I've always imagined it to be. If you love this story, thank her for her insistence and stubbornness that I publish things that I want to dismiss. They usually become a favorite part for the reviewers, so she's got a good sense of your likes and dislikes.**

* * *

"Okay, Miller, I want you to vent the atmosphere and disengage the artificial gravity in the rear compartment," Rodney asked as he suddenly became weightless. "Okay, open the rear hatch." The hatch opened and Rodney pulled himself towards it.

"Oh my!" he exclaimed when he saw the black expanse of space beyond the satellite, which seemed light years away from the safety of the jumper. _I've gotta jump that?_ His genius mind knew he only needed to launch himself and inertia would do the rest since there was no gravity. _But that's the terrifying part._

"Rodney? Rodney, did you make it?" Peter's voice came over his earwig.

"Haven't quite left the rear of the Jumper yet," he confessed as he noted that the pain in his back disappeared. _Hey, a benefit of Zero-G._

"Do I need to remind you of the time?" Peter snarked.

"Yes, please do remind me. Are we on a tight schedule?" he barked back._ He should be the one out here. I'm a dead man because of a pencil._

"Just pointing out the obvious," Peter replied.

"Okay, thank you. One small step, huh?" Rodney closed his eyes for a moment. A smile spread over his face as he noted that he wasn't nauseous. The two times he practiced in Zero-G on Earth he vomited all over the inside of his helmet, making him disliked by the Air Force astronauts with him. _Thanks to Jennifer I can float off into space and not get sick._

When Rodney was unpacking equipment in the back of the jumper before arrival at the satellite, he found a clear plastic baggie and a note, which read:

_Rodney,_

_I found out the details of what you'll be doing from Radek after we split up in the conference room. When he mentioned Zero-G work, I got these anti-nausea patches for him to put in your gear. Please share them with Peter and Miller._

_If you don't share, no more coffee! I WILL take back my Christmas gift because I know where you're hiding it._

_Oh, and please take care of yourself out there._

_Jennifer_

Rodney chuckled because Jennifer put a smiley face after the sentence about the conference room. Thoughts of their goodbye kisses flooded his mind as Peter annoyingly asked what was so funny.

Thinking of Jennifer safe and secure on Atlantis while he was preparing to throw himself into the abyss of space, made him regret not taking Radek up on his offer to go on the mission instead. _The curse of being too valuable is something I must bear._

* * *

Radek was pouring over Rodney's compression program trying to squeeze as much of the database as possible into their computers and onto data crystals. He'd give anything to be able to keep even a quarter, but there was just no way. Once again he would be that cause of disappoint to a beautiful woman. _The story of my life._

The Czech was trying not too get comfortable being in charge of the research and engineering departments while Peter and Rodney were gone, but he had to admit there was a certain appeal to not having anyone looking over his shoulder. Having spent all his life in Academia, it was terrifying and exciting to be out in the real world. _Only terrifying at the moment._

"Radek!" the frantic voice of Jennifer Keller pulled him out of his number crunching. "Meet me in the control room! Keller out."

"I'm already in the control room," he responded to silence on the radio.

Looking around the control room and across the walkway to the meeting Doctor Weir was conducting with Major Sheppard and Lieutenant Ford, he wondered what the young physician needed from him.

Radek was smart enough to realize the only reason the beautiful doctor called him was because her first two choices for help were off Atlantis, but he bore no ill feelings because of it. On the contrary, if asked he was thrilled she appeared to be immune to the buff soldiers running around and preferred to spend her free time with the more cerebral men on the base. The young American often reminded him of his youngest sister, Nadezda, with her naïveté and almost innocent qualities.

Her friendship with McKay perplexed the Czech though. Sometimes he'd catch her looking at his department head with such longing that he wondered if it was how he looked at Doctor Weir. _Could she be interested in him as something… more than a friend? No, not possible._

* * *

Gunny, Warrington, Yamamoto and two other Marines that Radek didn't know escorted Jennifer into the control room. _This can't be good._

"What's going on?" Sheppard barked as they came up the stairs.

The Major, Ford and Doctor Weir came to the control room several minutes before the arrival of Jennifer and her escorts. The military commander was calling security but getting no response over the radio and it was upsetting him.

"Sorry, sir," Richards said. "I couldn't tell you what happened over the VOX. We might have someone listening."

"Who?"

"Radek, I need to power the Alien Detector to maximum range," Jennifer said as she walked to the biometric sensor device.

"The what?" Ford asked.

"The biometric sensor we've had online for a month or so. It detects irregularities in biometric rhythm and reports them," Radek reminded the young Lieutenant.

"It was how we discovered that Chaya was an Ancient and now how we'll find out if a Wraith is on Atlantis," Jennifer said as she pulled up a chair.

Mouths fell open around the control room. The only sounds were her fingers typing and security personal running up the stairs to secure the jumper bay and other key locations around the control room.

"Wraith? Here," John said as he walked over to stand next to Jennifer, Radek and Richards. "White Rabbit?" he questioned the Marine, who only shrugged.

"How could the Wraith get into the city?" Elizabeth asked as she came over as well.

"Beamed in," Jennifer said. "Like at the Alpha Site."

"The scout ship," Radek said, smacking his head. "After your reports we should have thought of it."

"I know," the young woman said, looking guilty.

"Jennifer, this isn't your fault," Radek quickly said, stepping closer and placing a hand on her shoulder. The resemblance to his sister was so uncanny that Radek squeezed her shoulder to comfort her.

"Why didn't this thing pick up the Wraith already?" the Major asked both of them.

"Well, it requires a significant amount of power, so we narrowed its field of focus to scan solely in the Gateroom, figuring that was the only place that the Wraith, or any other alien for that matter, would likely enter the city from," he explained as he made some modifications while leaning over Jennifer's shoulder.

"Okay, so that was wrong!" Sheppard barked as he glanced at Elizabeth and Richards who stood slightly behind Jennifer and Radek.

The physician was pulling up biological data on the Wraith to program while Radek corrected the sensitivity of the sensors. "Yup. Now, if I could only expand the scanning field to..." He worked the controls and a map of Atlantis appeared on the screen. It showed a whole lot of white dots, indicating the humans in the city, and one red dot, which was highlighted. "My God!" the Czech and the American doctor exclaimed together.

"What?" Sheppard asked.

"The Wraith," Richards said as he stepped up to the doctors. "Good work, Doctor Keller, Doctor Zelenka."

"It works like the lifesigns detector, but it's able to distinguish different lifeforms," Radek said.

"So that's him?" John nodded to the highlighted dot.

"That's him," Zelenka confirmed

"You can track him in real time?" the Major asked.

"Yes."

"Ford, Gunny: we need two teams. Somebody get Teyla," John said to his men. "Let's go get him."

* * *

Doctor Beckett, who was escorted by Sergeant Carter, arrived in the control room moments after they located the Wraith. He and Doctor Biro had found Wraith cells on Bates' uniform and were not allowed to radio the control room hence Carson delivered the news in person.

Jennifer hadn't seen the Marine who kissed her in the gate room for quite some time and was surprised to see a bruise on his jaw. "Did Gunny really hit you?"

"No, ma'am," Carter said not looking at her.

"I know you were just really relieved we made it back alive and kissing Yamamoto would have grossed you out," she said, eliciting a smirk from Carter.

"Carter!" Richards barked. "You're with us. Koji, see the doctors back to the infirmary."

"Got closer than my allotted hundred feet." Will Carter winked as he turned. "Yes, Gunny."

"Who hit Carter?" Jennifer asked Yamamoto when he arrived. "Was it because of what he did because if it was…"

"He's lucky only _one_ guy hit him," Yamamoto said with a smile.

* * *

An hour later Jennifer was back in the control room to discuss final evacuation details with Radek and update Doctor Weir on the condition of Sheppard, Carter, Warrington and Sergeant Vaughn. During the capture of the Wraith the Major's team were the decoys and all got stunned.

"We're prepared for evacuation if you give the order," Jennifer said as she finished her report to Doctor Weir.

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Weir said. "How is everyone holding up?"

"Everyone's exhausted," Jennifer admitted. "All the stress is making everyone slip up. I should have figured that a Wraith must have been closer to affect Teyla like that."

"We are all doing the best we can in extremely challenging times," Elizabeth said. "Don't you dare start blaming yourself for…"

"Doctor Weir, it's McKay." Rodney's voice suddenly came over the radio in the control room. "Satellite is armed and ready. It should fire within the next minute or so. Keep your fingers crossed."

Jennifer felt her heart skip a beat at the sound of Rodney's voice. The extent of her depression at his absence surprised her as she'd never missed anyone so much before. Tears fell unchecked if she was alone too long so she stayed busy and with Bates or Marie in the infirmary.

"Fingers crossed. Good luck," Doctor Weir said as she looked around at the staff in the control room.

_This is it. Either this will work and Rodney will come back a hero or it won't and we'll be on the run like all the citizens of Pegasus._ Jennifer stepped closer to Radek and caught his blue eyes. A grim smile and a nod accompanied his glance at her.

"We have a kill!" Rodney yelled excitedly causing everyone to start.

Jennifer couldn't help but grab Radek's shoulder and then clap like the others. Chuck was pumping his fist and cheering along with Jimmy Tung, who had recovered from his injuries. _Rodney did it._

"We copy that, Rodney," Elizabeth said with a smile as she glanced at the technicians and scientists in the control room.

Jennifer caught Sergeant Wilkins' eye and smiled at the Marine near the door. They all needed to wait for the satellite to recharge and then take another shot. Radek said it wouldn't take more than a minute. Fear that the other Hive ships might fire on it crossed Jennifer's mind, but she brushed it aside.

"Atlantis, this is McKay. We have lost the satellite," Rodney said and his voice sounded empty.

Jennifer felt a tightening in her chest as she looked around the room to see if anyone noticed the difference in tone. The last time she heard his voice so _raw_ was when he told her he'd been afraid for her after her return from the Alpha Site.

"Did you manage to take out any more ships?" Elizabeth asked as silence descended over them.

"Negative. Two of the hive ships are intact," Rodney paused, "Elizabeth… Peter Grodin was aboard the satellite."

The tightness in Jennifer's chest intensified as a ringing filled her ears, one thought repeated in her head: _Peter's dead._

TBC

* * *

**A/N: I know, terrible spot to end, but I need to end somewhere.  
**


	34. Siege Part 4

**MGM owns all characters except OC's.**

**A/N: So sorry for the delay but my beta was on vacation and then visited me, so stories got neglected because I got to meet another member of my fan fiction family. I'm back now and hopefully not too rusty. Thanks, Betherdy, for the beta now that you are well rested!**

* * *

"_Jennifer." Peter Grodin's voice pulled her away from her analysis of Teyla's brain scans._

_"Peter, you startled me," she said, jumping and turning quickly to see the engineer._

_"Sorry," he replied as he walked over to her desk. "How are you? I heard you had another scare with Teyla."_

_"I'm fine. Gunny and Bates were there with stunners and I only have some bumps and bruises from before."_

_"That's not what I meant." His eyes roved over her face and petite frame searching for something to make the concern in his brown eyes go away. "That was… Listening to you… It had to be the worst experience of my life."_

_"Peter, I'm okay," Jennifer said, reaching out and squeezing his arm. "Thanks for checking on me." The Brit looked away shyly. "Now you be careful out there," she added, releasing his arm._

_"I'll be fine since my bad luck charm won't be there." Peter suddenly smiled his brightest smile in a long time._

"_Bad luck? Speak for yourself. You've gone off world twice and look what happened each time." Jennifer joined in the teasing._

"_I will go through anything to spend some time alone with you." Peter winked. "Which reminds me, Carter won't ever have a peaceful night's sleep on Atlantis again."_

"_Your engineers better be nice to him. He saved my life," Jennifer replied. _

_"You know those soldiers aren't the only ones who are concerned about you." Peter looked sheepish. _

_"Hey," she started._

_"Ah, ah, ah," Peter interrupted. "I'm off now. Can't keep your… I mean my boss waiting."_

_"My what?" she asked with raised eyebrows._

"_Take care of yourself and stay safe," Peter said as he ignored her questioning look._

_"You too," Jennifer replied seriously. "And, Peter?"_

_"Yes." He stopped and turned._

_"Can you watch out for Rodney? He'll be complaining about motion sickness, I'm sure, and a slew of other ailments. I've put some medication for motion sickness in his gear. Make sure he uses it and gives some to you."_

_Grodin's smile faded after she mentioned Rodney. "I'll do my best but he's one stubborn man."_

_"I know," she laughed. "Promise me?"_

_"For you, anything." Peter turned and left._

* * *

"Doctor Keller?" Warrington asked, cautiously. The physician left the control room abruptly after Doctor McKay announced that Peter Grodin was killed. Her face was frozen with a look of shock, but her body was obviously taking her somewhere. The Marine immediately followed her down the steps followed by Radek Zelenka as Doctor Weir announced the evacuation and urged everyone to remain strong.

Sergeants Tommy Stackhouse and Koji Yamamoto were hurrying up the corridor toward them when Jennifer stopped, sagged against the wall and slid to the floor. Sobbing issued forth from the small woman and it tore at the hardened soldier's heart. This small-town girl saved his life by taking on several Wraith and now he had to watch helplessly as she lost her valiant struggle against the tide of emotions she'd kept at bay.

Robert shook his head as he watched Zelenka, who was battling his own tears, wrap his arms around the doctor and attempt to calm her down. The Marine was well aware that Jennifer would probably only respond to being in the arms of one man. _And he's on the other side of the solar system._

"What happened to Jennifer?" Tommy yelled as he rushed to them and knelt beside the two geniuses.

"She's in shock. Peter Grodin was killed," Radek's broken voice filled them in.

"Oh God," Stackhouse gasped. "We should get her out of the corridor." The baby-faced pilot caught Robert's eye.

"In here." Warrington nodded to a door close by. Jennifer was inconsolable and Warrington and his fellow Marines didn't want anyone to hold this breakdown against her. _I can just see some of those idiots refusing to respect her because she cares so much._

Tommy and Radek got her on her feet and maneuvered her into the lab. It didn't appear she was going to stop crying, so Robert radioed the only other person he could think of that would be able to help her.

* * *

Jennifer was incapable of moving on her own and clung to whatever was supporting her as she felt herself pulled up from where she was sitting. _How did I end up sitting?_

"Should we get Doctor Beckett?" Stackhouse asked.

"No," Radek replied close to her ear.

_Radek?_ She remembered standing next to the Czech in the control room and then… Peter Grodin's smile and the sound of his laughter filled her mind. _I'll never see him again._ A new wave of tears fell as a flood of other faces came to mind. "W-we're all g-gonna die."

"No, we aren't all gonna die," Stackhouse replied from nearby. "You're having some sort of…"

"Jennifer!" a harsh, deep voice called, pulling her from her stupor and making her look up.

Everything was blurry until she saw movement, Radek pulled back and slid one arm around her back while the other person knelt before her.

"Jennifer," the voice softened as stormy grey eyes came into focus.

"G-gunny?" she asked as she swiped at her face. The rough jacket scraping across her skin helped to draw her back to the present.

"Jennifer, I need you," he said.

"What?" Her eyes widened because she never imagined the battle-tested soldier would utter those words to her.

"You're the other half of my team and I need you to get all these people to safety," he stated. "I have to stay behind and wait for the command team."

Jennifer knew the details of the evacuation like the back of her hand because she had thrown herself into them to hide her sadness at Rodney's departure. The evacuation would be in waves and Jennifer would go with the first one.

The new Alpha site was going to be a giant tent city in some ruins on a planet full of hundreds of waterfalls. Images of a favorite childhood book, _Dinotopia_, came to mind when she saw Stack's photos.

"I-I can't… breath," she gasped as a pressure descended on her chest. _We'll never come back to Atlantis.  
_  
"Deep breaths." The Marine coaxed her through calming techniques she tried to use with Lieutenant Reed on her last mission.

"Peter. Oh God, how could it be Peter?" Jennifer cried, clutching Radek's jacket once again.

"According to Doctor McKay, Doctor Grodin stayed with the satellite and ensured the first shot took out the Wraith cruiser. They're now sitting around unsure of what to do. He bought us more time," Gunny explained.

Jennifer raised her head at Rodney's name. "You talked to Rodney?"

"No, but I heard his report to Doctor Weir. We've got extra time to ensure everyone gets safely evacuated because of his sacrifice. We'll mourn the heroes later. I promise."

Jennifer pulled her arms from Radek and pushed off the floor. Richards grabbed her arm and, along with Zelenka, helped her to her feet. She squeezed the arms under her hands: one was thin while the other was heavily muscled.

Blinking back tears, she looked between the brains and the brawn that would protect Atlantis. If any more of these people died she seriously didn't think she'd be able to carry on. "I… Please be careful. I c-can't bear to lose…" her voice broke as she pulled her arms back to wrap around her midsection. Tears coursed down her cheeks again as she looked from grey to blue to brown eyes surrounding her. These men had become the brothers she never had as a child. "I can't lose anymore of you."

"I'll get them _all_ delivered to the Alpha site," Richards replied; the set of his eyes and jaw told her that he would personally shield all the others with his body if necessary.

"Without any scratches."

"Yes ma'am," he nodded.

* * *

Jennifer almost ran to Sergeant Yamamoto as he came through the gate with the last of the Athosians and control room staff, signifying that the critical staff would now arm the self-destruct, upload the virus and then dial the Alpha site to evacuate. It should take about eight minutes according to the tabletop drills she participated in.

Jimmy Tung turned to watch the gate shutdown and shook his head sadly when his eyes connected with hers. "I can't believe it's over."

"It's not over, Jimmy," she said. "We'll find another base of operations."

"Doctor Keller, Sergeant Collins' shuttle arrived just before I departed," Koji said quietly to her as he stopped in front of her. "All staff are accounted for, ma'am."

"Understood, Sergeant," she said, unable to keep a faint smile from touching her lips at the knowledge that Rodney would soon be coming through the gate. But the physicist didn't come in eight minutes… or ten.

The displaced Lanteans and Athosians gathered some distance from the gate while their leaders stayed near the DHD: Sergeant Stackhouse from the military, Captain Cole from medical, Doctor Pamela Simpson from science and engineering and Halling of the Athosians. There was a back-up plan in place that they were the creators of but Jennifer was loath to enact it. It was unknown to the command staff just in case.

"Something's wrong," Kavanagh stated as he moved toward the group. "We've gotta redial Atlantis. Find out what's going on."

"No," Jennifer said. She felt funny, as if she were weightless. It seemed as if her feet weren't in contact with the rocky soil and her senses had shut down. The constant roar of a massive waterfall close to their camp disappeared. _Rodney. John. Carson. Gunny. They're not coming. _

"Why not?" Kavanagh yelled back as he bullied his way forward. "They obviously had an issue with the self destruct or… something."

"Back off, Doctor," Sergeant Cassie Watts said, getting in the big scientist's face.

There were few female Marines on Atlantis. While the SGC traditionally didn't restrict women from any assignments as proven by Samantha Carter, Jennifer had come to learn that Colonel Sumner was somewhat of a chauvinist and never selected women for his teams. Sergeant Watts was one of three female Marines and a favorite sparing partner to Teyla. _Or punching bag as she often lamented in the infirmary._

"It's okay, Sergeant," Jennifer said, feeling detached from all that was occurring. She saw the glare Kavanagh shot at the female Marine and the others, but felt no emotions because of it. "Doctor Kavanagh wasn't privy to the final plans."

Kavanagh crossed his arms and stood his ground. "Please enlighten us, _oh fearless leader_." Animosity dripped from each word.

"I'm gonna shut…" Stackhouse started, stepping forward.

"The last thing we need to do is fight amongst ourselves," Jennifer said, surprised at the even tone of her voice. "Those of us who are leading the Alpha site had to select another place to go in case this one was compromised. Since the command team has not dialed, we need to assume something… happened and dial the other site. They don't know what site we chose."

"Then we leave someone here. I mean they can't find where we went if we don't tell them," Kavanagh started. "Zelenka has the control crystal to dial Earth. We can't leave. We've gotta try to raise Atlantis and see what happened." He moved quickly, shoving the petite Marine out of the way. "Jimmy, dial Atlantis."

"No!" Jennifer shouted.

"I'm gonna make you sorry if you take one more step, Doctor," Yamamoto threatened as he and Sergeant Klein stepped up to the scientist.

"Dial the gate, Jimmy," Kavanagh said.

"I already said no, we go ahead with the plan. Everyone needs to prepare to move out. I'll need all jumper pilots prepped and, Captain Cole, please get Sergeant Bates stabilized," Jennifer ordered.

"Yes, Doctor Keller," Amanda replied.

"No. Stop! We don't have to follow her," he said, stepping closer to the Marines in front of Jennifer and Stackhouse.

Sergeant Watts, who was fuming that the big man got past her knocking her to the dirt, had taken up a position with her P90 raised between Kavanagh and the DHD.

"Pamela, please give Jimmy the coordinates," Jennifer ordered.

Doctor Simpson had her eyes on Kavanagh and only nodded in Jennifer's direction. She was obviously waiting for something and Peter Kavanagh didn't disappoint.

"Unbelievable. Stupid Weir puts you in charge." He shook his head and pointed at the physician. "You've been sleeping with half the military so of course they brainwashed you to think like them too."

Chaos erupted and somehow Kavanagh managed to get near Pamela, his acting department head. The tall woman stepped between him and the Marines ready to tear him limb from limb. "I'm an honorably discharged naval _officer_…" she began.

"Stop it!" Jennifer shouted, finally showing some emotion. "We've gotta stop fighting."

"I'll handle this," Pamela said to the Marines, ignoring Jennifer's outburst. "Back off."

"Yes, ma'am." The soldiers shot daggers at Kavanagh but backed off, leaving him to smirk from his hiding spot. The smirk didn't last long as Pamela Simpson, the ex-pilot and current fifth degree black belt, turned and took the big man down with two lightning fast punches.

"Pamela!" Jennifer screamed.

"Write me up," she replied. "I hate that bastard and won't let him insult you or the military any longer. Now, Jimmy, dial M7G677." The engineer stepped over the unconscious scientist to approach the DHD.

Many eyes rolled as the _kid_ planet was named. _Secure the civilians, injured and Athosian children and elderly under the newly enhanced shield and then look for a new place to go. And hope Rodney or Gunny guess where we went._

As Jimmy started to dial the Gate lit up.

"Secure the gate," Stackhouse called as he pulled Jennifer bodily behind him. "Incoming Wormhole." They had no way to secure the gate, but the soldiers and a couple jumpers moved into position to fire if necessary.

"Doctor Keller, this is Major Sheppard." Whoops greeted John's voice from some of the scientists and support staff. "All military personnel are recalled to Atlantis by order of our new commander, Colonel Dillon Everett. The SGC has sent reinforcements and we're going to defend the city. Any civilians who wish to return and have the proper training may do so. Doctor Keller, please update Major Hawley on the status of the site as she'll be assuming command. Major Sheppard out."

The screams, tears and high-fiving went on for several minutes as new soldiers came through the gate. Jennifer felt her knees give out and reached out to grab the shoulder of Sergeant Yamamoto.

"Doctor?" he asked, offering a steadying arm.

"I... We've all been so strung out. Fighting. Acting stupid and irrational," Jennifer explained. "I just want to lie down for a very long time."

"With a pizza," Koji added smiling. "Which might be a possibility now that we can connect to Earth."

A smile spread over Jennifer's face, one that actually made it to her eyes. "We'll be able to go home." Her father's face came to mind and this time she didn't push it aside.

* * *

**A/N: I can't believe I made it to The Siege. The chapters are just going to be Siege X and there will be a lot more of them. For the fluff lovers, there will be quite a while w/o any of you'll just have to read my other stories until we get some fluff in here. **

**And I love _Dinotopia_ by James Gurney. Might make my way over to that fan fiction some day.**


	35. Siege Part 5 Jennifer Returns

**MGM owns all characters**

**A/N: Thanks to all of you for the wonderful reviews. I'm glad you are still enjoying the story and I will continue it as long as you keep those reviews coming. Thanks to Betherdy Babe as always for her beta.**

**I need to send a special thanks to my military advisors: One of the Lost and Starclipper01. First, thanks for your service to your country and second, thanks for all the questions I asked to get ready for the Siege. I hope I can finally put some of your advice to good use.**

* * *

"You can't," Stackhouse snapped as he got his gear ready to return to Atlantis. "You're supposed…"

"I've been relieved," Jennifer angrily replied. "Your new commander, Colonel Everett, said civilians could return. I've already briefed Major Hawley so I'm going."

"What about Bates?" Tommy slung back.

Jennifer paused for a moment. _He'd understand._ "He's in good hands with Captain Cole." She quickly turned and headed to the civilians and Athosians gathered near the gate.

"Doctor Keller," Halling addressed her. "Many of us wish to return to fight, will we be allowed to?"

"I'm not sure," she said, looking past Halling to at least thirty Athosian men and women. "I don't know how the military will react to assistance from our local allies, but I can assure you that Doctor Weir and I will plead your case." The physician couldn't help but notice Halling's reaction to Elizabeth's name and understood why.

The temporary leader of the Athosians didn't like Elizabeth Weir. They clashed often over matters of Athosian belief and most recently over the destruction of Atlantis. Halling confided in Jennifer that many Athosians, himself included, would separate from the expedition once they had all evacuated to a _safe_ site. He knew it would upset Teyla, but he couldn't follow Doctor Weir's decisions because he didn't have faith in them._ I understand she is doing what is best for your people, by sacrificing mine. _

"I appreciate your honesty," the big man said. "We shall return and see if we are allowed to help."

Jennifer couldn't help but smile. Halling and his people weren't going to tell her that she had to stay behind. The Athosians viewed her differently than most of those on the expedition who saw a young genius dragged to Pegasus by her mentor and way out of her element. Because life could be short in Pegasus, her youth meant nothing to these people and Jennifer never felt prouder then when thinking about their unconditional support of her.

"Thank you, Halling. Kanaan. Jeran." Jennifer nodded to the other leaders of the Athosians who stood around her.

"Doctor Keller," Pamela Simpson called.

"Yes," Jennifer replied after turning and seeing the scientist with several of her staff. "All the science personnel with the Ancient gene are here as Major Hawley requested."

"Thank you, Pamela," Jennifer said and then stepped closer so only Pamela could hear. "I'd like you to stay behind."

"Hey, I'm a great marksman. Top of my class at the Academy," she replied.

"Pamela, if you come along with Miko and Visnic, who have to go because they have the gene, Peter Kavanagh will be the most senior scientist here." Jennifer stared intently into the engineer's eyes.

"Understood," Pamela said grudgingly. "You know he's still unconscious, so we could tie him up…"

"Tempting, but you might forget him if you have to move on," Jennifer smiled.

"That's the whole idea." Pamela winked. "You know just being there won't save them if something happens."

Jennifer felt tears in her eyes again. "I know, but my family is on Atlantis."

Simpson pulled the smaller woman in for a brief hug. "Listen to whatever Richards tells you to do. He'll be pissed, but won't have time to send you back."

Jennifer smiled, but her heart plunged. _I can handle Gunny; it's Rodney I'm scared to face._

* * *

Rodney stood in stunned silence as soldiers from the SGC walked into Atlantis. He'd been looking forward to seeing Jennifer again on the other side of the gate, but would admit the Marines walking toward him were a beautiful sight._ Not as beautiful as Jennifer, but a sight for sore eyes nonetheless._

The leader of the newcomers, an older man with graying hair and a standard Marine haircut, approached Elizabeth, John and him. Aiden and the Marines standing nearby saluted him, but John just stared, which Rodney found odd_. I know John's not a Marine but shouldn't he salute too?_

"Doctor Weir?" the older Marine said.

"Yes," Elizabeth responded.

"Colonel Dillon Everett, United States Marine Corps," came the crisp reply.

"You should know..." Elizabeth started.

"General O'Neill sends his compliments on a job well done under extraordinary circumstances." Everett saluted her and said, "You are relieved."

The comment stunned Rodney as he tried to imagine this tough soldier as his boss.

Everett's brown eyes passed over Rodney and came to rest on the man standing behind the astrophysicist. The genius turned to see Gunnery Sergeant Richards standing at attention.

The Colonel had a grin split his face as he saluted and stepped forward with his hand outstretched. "Damn good to see your face, Gunny. Damn good thing."

"Not as good as seeing you, sir," Richards responded as he reached to shake Everett's hand.

"Where's Bates? At the Alpha Site?" Everett asked.

"Yes, sir, but he's been severely injured. We had a Wraith infiltrate the city recently," Gunny explained. "But it's been neutralized."

Rodney saw pain cross the newly-arrived officer's face for a brief instant. The genius had a second of hope that if Richards was glad to see this guy, maybe they all should be too.

"Understood. You'll have to brief me…"

"Sir, we're about to evacuate," Sheppard said as he interrupted the Colonel and Gunny's reunion.

"Without a fight?" Everett snapped as he turned back around to face John.

"Yes, sir," Sheppard replied as the Colonel glared at him.

"On my order," Weir replied.

"That evacuation order is rescinded." He looked around the Gateroom and said, "I assume you've armed the self-destruct device."

"Sir, what happened, as Doctor Weir was trying to tell you..." John was interrupted.

"I'm gonna need you to disarm it immediately," he stated.

"Hold on a second, Colonel, I don't think you fully grasp our situation here." Elizabeth looked exasperatedly at the soldier.

"You have three Wraith hive ships bearing down on your position and precious little to defend yourselves with. That about sums it up?" Everett replied in a condescending voice.

"You got our message!" Rodney felt his heart soar. I_t worked. It really worked. I can still amaze myself. _

"We got your message," his eyes met McKay's for the first time.

"It's down to two hive ships. We managed to destroy one of them," Elizabeth interjected.

"Good for you. That should make my job a little easier." He started up the steps.

"What exactly is your job, sir?" John asked, still looking totally skeptical.

"I should think that would be obvious to you by now, Major. We are going to defend Atlantis at all costs," Everett stated and turned again.

"Colonel?" Elizabeth moved to follow him.

Everett turned and held out a folded piece of paper for her to take. "Signed by General O'Neill."

Elizabeth unfolded the paper as John stepped forward to look at it.

"Colonel, it's not that we don't appreciate the thought, but if you had read the report on the armada heading this way, you'd know that there's not much we can do about it." John looked back up at the Colonel.

"Oh, I've read your report cover to cover, Major."

Rodney's mind was racing. _They got the signal and dialed us. How the hell could they dial us? We depleted… _"You found a ZedPM. That's the only way they could have dialed in from Earth."

"It was discovered in Egypt by a group of archaeologists. Damned thing's been under our noses the whole time," Everett confirmed.

"Fantastic! Wait a minute - how could you possibly bring the ZedPM back here? You'd need it to maintain the wormhole," Rodney said. His euphoria at having a fully functional ZedPM was dashed.

"As we speak, it is being transported up to the Daedalus, our new battle cruiser," Everett explained.

"Sister ship of the Prometheus. I didn't even know it was finished." Rodney's euphoria returned.

"With the ZPM boosting her engines, she should be here inside of four days. That's how long we have to hold this base. Major Sheppard, dial Pegasus Alpha site, recall all military personnel, as well, any civilians who'd like to return and help take part in damage control are welcome to do so. And when you're done with that, please join me in my offices in the conference room. We'll discuss our tactical position," Everett stated.

Rodney didn't really pay attention after he heard four days. Deciding to cling to the excitement over a ZedPM for several more minutes, he smiled at the Marines left standing around him before he headed up to the control room. _The only thing to make this any better would be to be able to tell Jennifer about it._

* * *

Jennifer felt like she was breaking curfew or at least going somewhere she shouldn't. There was no doubt in her mind that Rodney, Carson and John would go ballistic if they saw her back on Atlantis. Believing that Pamela's assessment of the big Marine was correct, Jennifer wasn't afraid of Richards finding out she'd returned. She knew he'd glare angrily, but not do anything else.

There wasn't anyone Jennifer recognized in the Gateroom or up on the control room level. Looking for a high-ranking officer, she stepped up to a female Marine captain. "Excuse me, I'm Doctor Jennifer Keller from the Alpha site. I'd like to report in to the new commander. Do you know where I could find him?"

The woman, who stood a tiny bit taller than Jennifer, looked at her like she was a bug to be squashed. "Colonel Everett is in a tactical briefing. You can wait for him outside the conference room, Doctor Keller."

"Thank you, Captain," Jennifer said, turning quickly to see the eighteen civilians and forty Athosians who returned with her. _You need to do this for all of them. They still think you're somehow in charge. _The desire to head to the infirmary and plead with Carson was strong, but she knew that she needed to act like she was a leader and marched purposely up the stairs.

The walk seemed to last for an eternity. Every step reminded her of the exhaustion, emotional fatigue, loneliness and stress that wracked her body for the last few days. Her stiff muscles from the beating they took at the first Alpha site protested once again any movement.

Once Rodney left Atlantis it was as if the physician needed to keep her mind on a constant treadmill, lest it remember his smile or the feel of his arms around her as he pressed a kiss to her lips and made her fall apart. After hearing that he was safe, she suddenly was able to process everything in her head and the terror and sorrow at Peter's death came out unchecked. _What an idiot I was, sobbing and carrying on. Radek dragging me through the corridors. I'll never be able to look at him again._

"Can I help you?" a deep male voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

"I'm Doctor Jennifer Keller. I'd like to see Colonel Everett, sir," she replied.

The soldier entered the conference room, leaving her standing with several others. Her eyes were caught by bright blue ones and were rewarded for pausing with a dimpled grin. The Air Force officer stood immediately to her left with several Marines.

Returning a friendly smile, Jennifer realized how surreal the situation she returned to was. Tons of weapons were being moved around below her and new soldiers with unfamiliar guns moved around the control room. _They must have brought new guns because those are definitely not P90s._

"Doctor, the Colonel will see you," the young man said to her. "Sir, you may enter as well," he addressed the men nearby.

Jennifer glanced at the blue-eyed officer and was once again greeted with a friendly expression. Everyone else appeared stoic and much like Gunny when on duty so a relaxed look made the butterflies settle in her stomach a bit.

The conference room was bustling with military staff and at least a dozen computers tied into the large monitor showing a picture of the planet and several red dots in orbit. _It looks like the bridge of a battleship._ Memories of watching war movies with her dad came to mind.

"Doctor Jennifer Keller," the older man with graying hair said as he turned to look at her.

* * *

"Yes, sir," a slip of a woman, who didn't look as old as her file stated, replied.

He couldn't tell if the _Sir_ was out of respect or mocking. _With the scientists in the SGC, it's always hard to tell._ The Colonel was very busy and only spoke to this woman because her file intrigued him.

This physician, who created the gene therapy he and his men desperately needed, was mentioned in the reports of all the senior staff on the base. Doctor Beckett, Major Sheppard and Doctor Weir raved about her intelligence, dedication to the mission and strength in a situation she was unprepared for. Beckett recruited her so his opinion was suspect and Weir and Sheppard's opinions meant nothing to the soldier either. The Major's record was a disgrace before he arrived on Atlantis and his actions since made Everett distrust his judgment even more. It was the report of the Head of Science that caught his eye. In the years he'd known of Doctor Rodney McKay, the arrogant man never complimented anyone.

Everett read several reports where McKay claimed that Samantha Carter was an idiot. The Air Force Lieutenant Colonel was the smartest person Everett had ever met, so he was shocked to see glowing comments about this medical researcher coming from McKay. The cranky astrophysicist even petitioned repeatedly in twenty-page emails to Weir and Beckett that she belonged in his department.

"What can I do for you, Doctor? As you can see, I'm a busy man," he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Jennifer Keller really did look like a deer in the headlights. Her brown eyes widened and he could see her visibly swallow, but she didn't remove her gaze from his eyes.

"I… I wanted to tell you the Alpha site is secure," she began.

"Major Hawley informed me already," he said, stepping in front of her in his most intimidating posture.

"I… I wasn't sure if I needed to check in. I came back with a little over a dozen civilian scientist with and without the gene as well as forty Athosians who all want to help," she said with a quiver in her voice.

Everett narrowed his eyes. "You didn't need to check in, but I appreciate it."

She seemed to relax a bit until movement behind him caught her eye and the look of fear returned. Momentarily however as it was replaced by one of stubbornness. Everett glanced behind him and saw a look that sent most men he knew scurrying for their lives.

"Do you have a problem, Gunnery Sergeant Richards?" Everett asked. He'd read in Bates' file that the Marine had protected the young physician on several missions.

"No, sir," Richards said as his eyes left the doctor to look at his CO.

"I was going to have Doctor Keller take these pilots to the infirmary and start inoculating them with the gene therapy," he said. "But if you object, I'll send her packing."

The physician in front of him was positively livid, glaring at the big Marine. It took all of Everett's control not to laugh. He was almost expecting her to stick her tongue out at the Marine.

"The infirmary is the best place for her, sir," Richards replied.

"Doctor Keller, take the civilians with you for now," Everett said. "As for the Athosians, they can return to their quarters until… we need them." The Colonel didn't trust them based on the new intelligence about Teyla's link to the Wraith. _Better to keep your enemies close._

"Thank you, sir," she replied with obvious relief. "Is there anything else you need before I go?"

"Doctor Beckett will be needed in the chair room as back-up to Major Sheppard, so you'll have to brief my medics on any information you might have about potential wounds from the Wraith." Everett watched her closely to see how mentioning a Wraith attack might affect her.

Her expression saddened. "I'll share what we know, which isn't a lot I'm afraid. No one has survived."

"Except you."

"Me?" she replied, pointing at herself. "I only survived because Gunny… I mean Gunnery Sergeant Richards gave me his battle armor." The physician pointed toward Richards standing to the side of Captain Radner before awkwardly lowering her hand.

Everett nodded. "Most of us owe our lives to Gunnery Sergeant Richards. Even me." A smile crossed his face as he nodded to her.

A smile spread over the woman's face as she obviously felt some bond with him. "He's the best."

"I'll be sure to put that note in his file," Everett replied. "Now, if you don't mind escorting these pilots to the infirmary."

"It takes at least four hours for the treatment to take hold or not. They can start their training in the jumpers after the shots," she stated.

Everett was having a hard time not smiling. _This is going to kill my reputation._ "Outstanding."

"Thank you." She turned without another glance at Richards.

"If she's nearly as smart as McKay, we don't want to lose her," Everett said, looking at the head of security of the Atlantis expedition.

"After you, Doctor Keller." The Air Force officer's voice interrupted his conversation.

"Thank you, Major…" Jennifer replied.

"Lorne."

"I'll send Raven and Cole to guard the infirmary, sir," Richards said, glancing at the door.

"Some of your best boys?" Everett looked at the backs of Jennifer Keller and the pilots. "I agree."

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: There is going to be a lot of Jennifer coming up since this is her story and what happens with the other characters doesn't change. If it does, I will write about it.**


	36. Siege Part 6 Preparations

**MGM owns all characters except OCs**

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews and for Betherdy Babe's beta.**

* * *

"Carson, will you sit down?" Jennifer snapped, putting on her _doctor_ voice.

"What in the bloody hell possessed you to come back? We're gonna be in a battle in less than a day's time," Carson shouted, still red-faced, but finally able to form a coherent sentence.

"I need to scale up the gene therapy to inoculate almost two-hundred soldiers _and_ I need to check on the eight out there," she motioned to the waiting area, "to make sure they're okay. I don't have time for a lecture and neither do you. The Colonel ordered you to the chair room to help Rodney until John finishes training these pilots."

"A-ha!" Carson put up one finger and waved it under her nose. "Rodney and John won't stand for this."

"You will _not_ mention this to them. They have more important things to be concerned with than me."

"You're right," Carson said calmly. A smile erased his angry expression as he looked past Jennifer into the infirmary. "I know someone far better to do that than those two."

Jennifer's shoulders sagged. "Go." She motioned for Carson to leave her office while she prepared to face one angry Marine.

She saw her boss smile at Richards as he passed the Marine and seven heavily armed men surrounding him on his way out of the infirmary. Deciding to delay the inevitable a bit longer after catching Richards' eye, she stopped near the pilots.

"Major," she addressed Lorne. "How're you feeling?"

"Like nothing happened," the pilot responded and then nodded toward the entryway. "Looks like the Marines are eager to get their shots."

The other officers chuckled, but one of them said quietly. "That's Gunnery Sergeant Richards isn't it?"

"Yes," Jennifer replied, furrowing her brow. _What's this about?_

"_The_ Sergeant Richards?" Lorne's eyebrows rose.

"Let me get them settled and I'll do one final scan before I send you off to jumper flight school," Jennifer said, leaving the officers.

The Marine and Air Force pilots all smiled brightly at her and watched her leave.

* * *

Trying to look confident, Jennifer stared at Richards only to notice that he had snapped to attention. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that Major Lorne was close behind her. "Can I help you, Major?"

"Just seeing what they need from you," he said before returning the salute once they got closer. "At ease, Sergeants."

"It's fine, Major. Really, I'm sure Gunny is just filling me in on security protocols for the infirmary," she said sweetly as she looked up at Richards.

Jennifer recognized Yamamoto, Warrington and Carter standing nearby, but not the other four men. All of them were bristling with weapons she never saw before. Most sported two holsters, larger guns than P90s in their hands and several, Richards and Carter included, had what appeared to be some type of gun in a holster across their backs.

"The doctor's correct, sir," Richards explained. "I wanted to personally introduce her to Sergeants Raven and Cole, who will be guarding the infirmary."

Jennifer saw two tall men, both with nearly shaved heads, step forward. One had blue eyes and the other green, but they could have been fraternal twins otherwise. "Welcome to Atlantis," she said with a smile.

"Sergeant Cole," Lorne said, stepping forward to shake the man's hand. "It's good to see you again."

"You too, sir," Cole replied.

"It looks like you'll be in good hands, Doctor Keller. Sergeant Cole once guarded the White House," Lorne said with a smile.

"So you worked in the White House?" Jennifer chuckled.

"Hardly." Lorne smiled back, but suddenly looked startled. "Excuse me," he said, stepping away to answer his earwig.

"So," Jennifer said as she, crossing her arms and looking at Richards.

"Carter," he said, putting a hand in front of the other Marine with an open palm. "Give me your Compact."

"Oh come on," Carter whined. He looked at Jennifer with a little boy about to get a time out. "Why do I have to turn over my gun?"

"I already have a gun, "Jennifer said and put a hand on her holster to ensure herself that she was wearing it.

"This is better than a Beretta," Carter replied as he lifted his leg to pull a small handgun from a holster in his boot. "You better take care of this. It's a family heirloom."

"Carter you're full of shit," Yamamoto said, drawing chuckles from the other men. "You got it an hour ago."

"_But_ I have one just like it back on Earth and that one's an heirloom," the blond Marine replied.

"Carter, get a Stinger on your way to the control room," Richards ordered.

"Am I a pack mule now?"

The glare from Richards finally shut him up and had him turning to leave. "Doctor Keller, Raven and Cole are good second and third choices since you can't have me."

"I believe if Gunny saves your life one more time, you're even," the newly arrived Sergeant Raven said. "Then he'll really kick your ass."

Jennifer couldn't hold back a grin. "I see you know Carter well, Sergeant Raven."

"Yes, ma'am," Raven continued, "we fought together for years. When Colonel Sumner offered Gunny and these guys an adventure they couldn't pass up, they jumped ship on Colonel Everett and came to this lovely place. Now we need to come and save their sorry asses."

"Doctor Keller," Lorne interrupted before the Marines she knew could reply. "I need to take the pilots to the jumper bay. Are we cleared to go?"

"I don't _have_ to run those tests now. Report back after your lessons," Jennifer advised.

"We'll escort you to the jumper bay, sir," Richards said. "We're heading back to the control room."

"Thank you, Sergeant Richards," Lorne replied and headed back to round up the other pilots.

"Fly boys," one of the new Marines muttered under his breath.

A nasty look from Gunny shut the soldier up as Richards finally handed Jennifer the new gun and took her Beretta.

She looked at the lighter weapon in her hand. "What is it?"

"A USP 9mil Compact pistol from HK," Gunny explained. "We think they're better than Berrettas." His comment elicited a few smiles and chuckled.

"Thanks," Jennifer replied, truly stunned that Gunny wanted to give her a _Marine_-approved weapon.

Richards nodded and turned to face Raven and Cole who stood to Jennifer's right. "Not one toe outside this infirmary without a proper escort. Understood."

Jennifer's eyes widened at the intensity in Richards' voice. For a moment she wondered why he found it necessary to protect her so much. _There are more important people than me around here and I honestly don't think he likes me like Rodney does. _As soon as she thought of the physicist, who was probably in the chair room several towers away, fear gripped her. "Gunny, do you have a minute?"

"Understood," Raven and Cole replied simultaneously before Richards turned to look at Jennifer with a raised eyebrow.

"It's important," she stated and nodded toward an empty area in the corner. Jennifer was aware that all eyes, including the officers who had come to be escorted to the tower, were on them.

Richards looked at Major Lorne who had a confused expression on his face awaiting a confirmation it was okay to delay their departure. The Major nodded, so Richards followed Jennifer to the more secluded area.

"I'm sorry, I know you're in a hurry and really pissed at me, but I couldn't sit there while everyone I care about is in harm's way again," Jennifer confided.

The Marine had a look of understanding on his face and slowly nodded his head.

"Thanks," she said, feeling relief that someone understood her need to be here. "I-I really need you to do a favor for me. _Please_ protect Rodney. He deserves the best you have to offer watching his back a lot more than me. I hope…"

"I can assure you that protecting Doctor McKay is high on our list and he'll get the best we have to offer," Richards said and then he leaned even closer. "And I won't tell him you're here until _after_ he saves us all."

* * *

"He's not even trying!" Rodney shouted at Radek like Carson wasn't sitting in the room with them.

The amount of power at his disposal in this chair was so much greater than back on Earth; he was even more terrified so he tried not to listen to McKay's ranting lest it trigger a reaction from him. The physician's mind was consumed with his concern about Jennifer at the moment so it provided a great distraction. As soon as he saw her leading a bunch of soldiers into the infirmary a couple hours ago his heart sped up and his mind raced in circles as he imagined any number of terrible things happening to her. "We've tried this a dozen times," he stated, hoping Rodney would let him go because he was also desperate to get back to the infirmary to watch over Jennifer.

"Never with this power source," Radek explained.

"I'm serious. Major Sheppard's your man," Carson offered._ If they get John here, I should tell him Jennifer's returned._ He'd found out from Doctor Beck that Richards did not send Jennifer back to the Alpha site, but did leave two heavily armed Marines in the infirmary. This surprised Beckett. It made him think about telling Rodney when he first arrived in the chair room, but Atlantis really did need him to focus. Carson was certain the physicist would want to lecture him and Jennifer and he couldn't deal with that. _Jennifer's right about letting Rodney do his job. I'll see what John thinks when I see him.  
_

Rodney stood in front of Carson now. "Of course he is, but he's training pilots and deploying space mines right now, so we're stuck with you. Now, listen to me very carefully, do exactly what I tell you to do and hopefully no one will get hurt."

"Rodney, there must be someone else," Carson pleaded. His desire to punch his best friend for speaking to him like a child was absent for once. _There are more important things than pride to be concerned about right now. _

"Concentrate on powering up the chair, nothing else, nothing more, nothing but. Don't start thinking about..." Rodney continued in the same tone as before.

"Don't tell me what not to start thinking about, or I'll start thinking about it!" Carson interrupted. Despair and fear consumed him so he finally snapped at the engineer.

"Please power it up," Rodney barked.

Reluctantly, Carson took a deep breath, closed his eyes and concentrated, causing lights on the dais and chair to come on and the chair to recline. The physician tried to only think of the power flow from the generator on the floor through the chair. The feeling he got being tied into the city was a hundred times more intense than in Antarctica.

"Good. Good. Good. And ... oh no." Rodney pulled him out of his concentration.

"What? Did I do something wrong?" Carson gasped.

Rodney unplugged his laptop and hurried out of the room.

"So, see? Nothing to worry about," Radek said as he came to stand next to Carson, who had begun breathing once again.

Rodney reappeared and said, "Get him out of the chair." The physicist then disappeared again with a couple of Marines in tow.

Radek and Carson exchanged looks after the Czech pulled him from the chair. "Should we follow him?" The Scot asked.

Radek shrugged. "No idea. Damned if we do and damned if we don't I imagine."

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: Just threw in last bit because I love Rodney and Carson in this scene in the show. I know I didn't change anything, but I couldn't resist.**


	37. Siege Discovery

**MGM owns most characters.**

**A/N: Thanks, Betherdy Babe, for the beta as always and to the 'real' Chris Raven for all the quotes you've gathered that I'm starting to sprinkle into his dialogue.**

* * *

Jennifer tried to focus on getting to the lab at the end of the long corridor, but fear of a Wraith jumping out to kill them was on her mind. She tried to counter it with faith in her bodyguards, who would give their lives to keep her safe.

Over the past two days, which included a wave of dart attacks and hunting for Wraith that had beamed into the city, Jennifer kept busy in the infirmary. There were injured from the attacks to care for, a new evacuation plan to be drawn up for the infirmary and stimulants had to be distributed to those who absolutely _could not_ be allowed to sleep because they were vital to the survival of Atlantis.

The last task troubled her far more than she admitted to anyone. As a doctor, giving a healthy individual something that could harm them was against her morals. Carson had assured her that the stimulant of choice by the military didn't have any negative side effects, but there was little time for Jennifer to research it on her own. Doing the best she could to ensure that those she gave it to were healthy and had no underlying medical issues was all she could do to placate herself.

When the request came to deliver a second dose to two certain individuals, she grew concerned. These men had been awake for over forty-eight hours and asked to stay up for another couple of days.

The physician had read an article that said humans could still function after four to six days without sleep, but she didn't want to retest the theory. _Especially not with these two._ Concern for their safety led her to grab some special supplies in her office and head out with Sergeant Raven and another heavily armed guard to the science labs.

Jennifer truly enjoyed her time with Sergeant Chris Raven, who was guarding the infirmary. The young man was witty and extremely intelligent. She'd never met anyone who was so erudite and could offer a quote for every occasion. He apparently kept a copy of _The Art of War by Sun Tzu_ in his backpack at all times.

During the dart attack when the lights were out and Jennifer, along with many scientists and medical staff, huddled in the infirmary and corridors surrounding it for protection, his quiet voice helped calm her racing nerves.

"_Never attack when the enemy is desperate, they will fight that much harder."_ Raven used that particular one to assure her they would succeed in this battle because they would fight harder since _they_ were the desperate ones.

Jennifer didn't feel too confident, but he was trying so she gave him the benefit of the doubt.

* * *

As she approached the research labs she noted more soldiers patrolling the corridors. It was as if something extremely valuable were behind the doors. _Something very important to me is in here._

Jennifer felt real fear course through her veins once again. This time because of the reaction she was sure to get once she went through the doors ahead of her.

_Never show fear to your enemy._ Another Raven quote came to mind. _Rodney's not my enemy, far from it._ A blush flooded her cheeks thinking of the last time they were together, which was almost a week ago. An ache she tried to ignore came back followed by some excitement at seeing his face again.

"Doctor Keller," a deep voice spoke from behind her and the Marines escorting her.

"I have a proper escort," she said as she turned to face the big Marine. "I haven't seen you in days. How are you?" Concern was in her voice because she'd grown so accustomed to working with Gunny before and during the evacuations that she really did miss the quiet presence of another Midwesterner like herself.

"Been busy following orders," he replied. His cool grey eyes looked over her shoulder to Sergeant Raven as if asking with the one look for a history of the last two days.

"All's quiet around the infirmary and on the walk down here," Raven replied to the unspoken question.

"Time is of the essence according to Colonel Everett, so I need to see my patients," Jennifer stated, anxious to see Rodney even if he was going to be upset.

Richards nodded toward the door. His eyes told her to be ready for one angry Canadian when she went through the door.

Jennifer took a deep breath before walking into the lab.

The messy table and large _R2D2_-looking cylinders on the table made her raise a brow. Rodney kept his lab and work area pristine and demanded the same of his staff. For stuff to be strewn around while they worked on nuclear weapons raised her suspicions about Rodney's health.

The two engineers were literally up to their shoulders inside the guts of the bombs. Jennifer didn't notice a great deal of shielding in the lab and even less on the men working with enriched uranium. When her eyes fell on a Geiger meter sitting on the counter without being turned on, the doctor decided a firm hand was going to be her best defense against McKay. "What are you two doing?" Jennifer said loudly.

Radek and Rodney whipped their heads around at the sound of her voice. The latter's eyes widened so that his baby blue eyes appeared to double in size. "Jennifer!"

Picking up the Geiger meter and dropping her backpack on a chair outside Rodney's office, she turned it on and waved the paddle around the lab. She noted Warrington at the back of the lab and Yamamoto near the front backing away as the clicking sound from the meter sounded throughout the lab.

"Jennifer!" Rodney yelled again, his gloved hands still gripping the casing of the bomb.

"You're not even wearing monitors," Jennifer scolded as she approached the men.

"Jennifer!" Rodney called again as she chose to ignore him and focus on the readings.

"Jennifer, when did you get back?" Radek asked, looking as shocked as Rodney but obviously quicker to come to terms with her reappearance.

The physician moved closer to the Czech with the radiation monitor. "Did you find a way to shield these things? Based on Rodney's report I can't believe the Genii did this."

"We've made a few modifications…" Radek started.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Rodney finally managed to get a sentence put together.

Being careful not to reveal that she was anxious to be alone with Rodney, even if it was in his office with Marines and Radek outside the doorway, Jennifer ignored him and addressed Radek. "Colonel Everett gave me ten minutes to check your vital signs and make sure you're still fit for duty before I give you more stimulants."

"We don't have ten minutes to spare…"

"Yes, you do," Jennifer finally looked directly into Rodney's eyes. He appeared angrier than she ever saw him before. But there was something else that she noticed in his eyes. _I think he misses me as much as I miss him. _"The jumpers reported before I left that the Hive ships have not moved, so you can spare some time for _your_ doctor."

"I thought you didn't have assigned patients?" Rodney growled under his breath. Because it was obvious Jennifer wasn't going to be intimidated, he turned his angry cobalt glare on Gunnery Sergeant Richards, who was standing just inside the door from the main corridor. Of course the Marine did nothing except maintain his silent sentinel position.

* * *

Jennifer took vital sign readings from Radek while he wolfed down an MRE and a bottle of water. To ensure she didn't take more than ten minutes each with Radek and then Rodney, she set the timer on her watch.

The Czech drilled her about when and why she came back. The physician placated his concern with assurances that she'd been in the infirmary during the attacks and that the guards assigned to secure the infirmary were hand picked by Richards.

After Jennifer gave Radek his pills and forced him to take a bottle of water and some power bars, the Czech paused to pull Jennifer into a hug. "V bezpečí."

"Thanks, Radek," she said, returning the hug and glad someone else accepted her reasons for returning. _Now if only Rodney could be so understanding. Wishful thinking._

* * *

When she heard the door shut behind her, she jumped and felt her body tense. "Rodney, you don't need to close the door. I'm sure they'll hear you screaming at me even through the walls." Jennifer turned away from Rodney to reset her scanner and take out the special MRE and thermos she tucked in her backpack.

"What are you doing here, Jennifer?" Rodney demanded.

The physician turned and assessed Rodney with critical eyes. His posturing and tone of voice spoke of anger, but not his eyes. The sky blue told a different story, one of exhaustion and fear. _Fear for me?_ Deciding not to take the bait and fight with him, she tried the sweetness that won his friendship in the first place. "I've got some food and drink for you while I take your vital signs. I'm not giving you drugs without making sure you can physically take them. You and Radek are too important…"

Rodney moved swiftly for a man who hadn't slept in at least two days that she knew about to stand directly in front of her. His azure gaze moved swiftly over her face and glanced down at the tac vest and holster that she wore. When his eyes returned to hers, she noted that his jaw seemed to unclench and his body to relax. "When have you eaten a good meal or slept?" he asked with concern laced in with the last remnants of anger.

"Carson makes me try to sleep every twelve hours or so. At least for a couple hours. I don't think I've slept more than an hour since… we evacuated." Jennifer bit her tongue to keep from saying it had been since Peter died. The pain of his loss threatened to come back so she motioned for Rodney to sit. "Eat while I check your blood pressure and oxygen levels."

"I can't really spare five minutes, let alone ten," he said as he sat with crossed arms on the small couch in his office.

"I think you can spare time for this," she said, taking the MRE and setting it on a chair she pushed over to be used as a table.

"Is this…" Rodney's eyes widened and a shocked expression emptied his face of any traces of anger.

Jennifer couldn't help smiling because surprised Rodney was one of her favorite looks. _Not as handsome as happy Rodney but I'll take it. _"I kept a couple after the food rationing discussion." She was loath to bring up their battle over Rodney hording food.

"Salisbury steak and potatoes au gratin?" Rodney grabbed the utensils she set down and was about to dive in but paused.

"Your favorite MRE." She smiled as she took a seat next to him. "I'll need your left arm for a minute."

"When have you eaten?"

"Me? This is about you." Jennifer was surprised he didn't start shoveling the food in his mouth. "I have plenty of people making sure I eat, but you don't. So dig in. Times flying."

Rodney stared at her until she lifted her head from putting the blood pressure cuff on his arm to meet his gaze. "Carson, the new soldiers that came with Colonel Everett and Sergeants Raven and Cole, who is actually Amanda's cousin. I didn't realize the SGC let family serve together."

The physicist must have believed her because he suddenly started eating. "It's actually an easy way to recruit," he said between mouthfuls. "They just try to keep them apart. There are a few married couples serving too."

The last line caused Jennifer's face to flush and a slight tremor to shake her frame when her hand took hold of Rodney's wrist to measure his pulse. His warmth under her cold fingers warmed her heart as well as her flesh. Her feelings toward the cranky astrophysicist were strengthening even when he wasn't around. The word marriage made a new idea drift into her brain, but she quickly banished it because there was no time to think of such things.

* * *

Rodney saw Jennifer look at her watch while she took his pulse so she didn't notice the expression on his face. For one brief instant he wasn't worried about rebuilding a nuclear weapon in the lab next door. The Wraith weren't hours away from destroying the city unless he and Radek got the jumpers to work as remote control drones. He wasn't under orders from Sheppard to ignore his growing attraction for the beautiful woman at his side. For one brief instant an emotion that no one would ever believe he could possess, himself included, crossed his mind. He'd uttered the word to Heightmeyer only days ago and would deny it to anyone if asked, but for an instant while he ate his favorite meal, Rodney McKay felt the stirrings of love for the woman at his side.

By the time Jennifer looked back up into his eyes, that fleeting emotion that caused his heart to feel like it had swelled in his chest was gone. In its place was concern and fear for her safety. "Jennifer, I want you to go back to the Alpha site. I can't believe you've been here through the first wave of attacks and I don't want you here for the next one."

"I'm fine. I've got lots of people checking in on me," Jennifer said, sitting up straight and gripping the blood pressure cuff tightly on her lap. "Even Major Lorne called me and stopped in yesterday."

"Major Lorne?" Rodney hadn't heard the name.

"He's a pilot." Jennifer smiled. "He took the gene therapy and in about an hour his level is almost as strong as Carson and Miko, who are natural carriers. I can't wait until this blows over to find out why he's so special…"

"Special?" Rodney didn't like this one bit. _Great, another flyboy poking around._

"There's got to be something different in his genetic make up to make him almost as strong if not stronger than several of the natural carriers," she spoke with enthusiasm and the smile wouldn't leave her face.

Major Lorne suddenly joined Sergeant Will Carter on Rodney's hit list when it came time to adjust the environmental controls on the barracks' level. _He better head back to Earth when this is over or his time on Atlantis will be hell. _

* * *

Jennifer was happy to think about her research for even a minute or two. _Anything to keep from feeling afraid. _

While Rodney's vital signs were fine, she saw the exhaustion and knew he wasn't eating enough to sustain his high metabolism. "Rodney, you have to eat some power bars. Promise me you will? If you drop, Colonel Everett'll blame me and then I'll be pissed at you."

Rodney huffed as he finished the last forkful of food.

Jennifer turned and grabbed the thermos. "I realize I'm giving you stimulants on top of caffeine but I think the coffee…"

"You made coffee?" Rodney's eyes widened in diameter and suddenly reminded Jennifer of a pool of clear water.

"Yes…" Before Jennifer could finish, the man next to her took the thermos and set it on the chair. His arms snaked around her waist and his lips descended on hers before she could comment about the thermos being ripped from her hands.

At the first touch of Rodney's lips on hers, every thought rushed out of her mind. Her entire body reacted to the sudden presence of something that was craved but not thought about because it wasn't available. Her arms slid around his waist and she leaned closer to him.

The faint brushing of lips intensified, causing Jennifer to whimper. Rodney heard the sound, barely audible to her, loud and clear as he deepened the kiss.

Jennifer hadn't felt so alive and so safe since Rodney left. It was as if this man's touch washed away the pain and fear of the last few days and replaced it with love and hope. Needing to get closer to him and not caring that heavily armed men and Radek were outside his office door, which any of them could easily open, Jennifer shifted so she was almost on his lap.

A loud beeping noise sounded from behind Rodney's back and the physician tried to remember what it was and why it was so important. _Nothings more important than being in Rodney's arms. Not even timers. _

"Ugh…" Jennifer moaned as she pulled back from the onslaught on her mouth.

* * *

Breathing heavily and struggling to control himself, Rodney shook his head. This woman caused him to do things he'd never done or dreamed of doing before.

"T-time's up," Jennifer breathed just as heavily as him. "Ten minutes."

"I know. Back to the nuclear weapon," Rodney groaned as he closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers. He knew he couldn't look at her and also knew that if he didn't get up and pull himself together Richards or one of the other Marines would probably shoot him.

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: Sorry for all the alternating POVs but I had to get into each of their heads.**


	38. Help Arrives

**A/N: Sorry for the long, long delay in this update. Thanks to **_**Strike Justice**_**, a new military adviser for the weapons and tactical advice on this chapter. Thanks to those who are still following this after the long hiatus and to **_**KoineKid**_** for brief beta. All mistakes are mine.**

* * *

An explosion rocked the infirmary. It sounded closer than any since the Wraith attack began. This was _the final fight_ Raven shouted before he raced out to his post in the corridor. The blast doors were down around most of the infirmary and all but a few patients had been removed to the Gateroom and its surrounding area.

Jennifer gripped the rail on the closest gurney and felt her heart skip a beat in fear. Memories of explosions, culling beams and screaming men filled her head. Flashes of real panic came and went with each breath.

"D-d-doctor," a voice slurred from a Wraith stunner blast came from the bed as a shaky hand covered hers.

She jerked out of her flashback and looked into intense brown eyes belonging to Captain Joseph Kidd of the US Air Force. The head of the 3-person linguistics department had been stunned covering the evacuation of the science labs to the infirmary. Warrington carried him in over his shoulder several hours before.

"I'll get you out of here, Captain," she said, finding strength in the need to care for others.

"G-g-gun," he managed through still sluggish facial muscles.

"I don't think so. You can barely move after taking a stun blast. I'd hate for you to hit me instead of…"

An explosion and the sound of metal being torn echoed through the infirmary.

"Breach!" A voice screamed from the corridor.

Jennifer's eyes widened and the tightness in her stomach increased to full-blown pain. _This is it._

"Gun, Doc." Joseph pushed himself up on his right elbow.

"Jennifer, we've gotta go," Marie yelled as she came into the room.

"I know." Jennifer snapped into action. "Release the locks on the wheels."

Kidd groaned and squeezed his eyes in frustration when it was obvious two civilian females were going to be saving him instead of the other way around. "I guess your Southern upbringing didn't prepare you for this," Jennifer said with forced calmness in her voice.

A brown-eyed glare met hers as she and the head nurse began rolling him into the corridor where a fire fight was going on between Raven, Cole and two new Marines versus an unknown number of Wraith trying to get through an opening in the blast doors.

Knowing she needed to get to the transporter didn't prevent her from looking back to see how bad things were going for the Marines. The four of them were spread across the corridor behind overturned gurneys and cabinets. They were picking off Wraith as they stepped through the opening but their sheer numbers were going to wear down the soldiers and their ammunition supplies.

Jennifer desperately wanted to help and a harsh negative bark from her patient pulled her back. Marie stood trying not to tremble and failing miserably at her side. "Right." The physician shook her head and started to move when a blue blast hit Marie.

"No!" Jennifer screamed as she dropped to the ground next to her stunned friend.

"G-get her up," the slurred voice of the linguist called.

Jennifer was a bit smaller than Marie but had adrenaline on her side as she attempted to heft the nurse onto the gurney. Captain Kidd used what movement he could get out of his arms to help pull Marie on top of him and hold her tightly.

"Go!" Raven yelled from behind Jennifer as a small explosion racked the corridor.

Jennifer stumbled and almost landed on her knees if not for an arm grabbing her around her waist. "Hey, Doc, what are you still doing here?" Wilkins asked.

"Kyle." Jennifer couldn't help but brighten as she saw that another of her friends was still alive.

"Get them out of here," Carter shouted.

Looking quickly around, she saw Yamamoto, Warrington and Carter heading to the makeshift barricade Raven and Cole made. "What…"

"Just go, Doc. No heroics this time or my ass is really toast," Wilkins said as he took position behind Jennifer firing down the corridor.

"I'm really glad to see you guys," Jennifer said as she started pushing her stun victims toward the transport.

"We're helping folks evacuate," Kyle said, getting off a few round from his rifle. "Wraith are beaming in like crazy. Communications are down to most teams. We're making our way up the tower pushing people ahead of us."

"Did you find many people still left?"

"We cleared out the all the floors below."

"Rodney?" Jennifer couldn't stop herself from mentioning the physicist. _So much for keeping your feelings quiet._

"Don't worry about Doctor McKay. He's well protected."

Another explosion shook the corridor and Carter swore loudly, interrupting her conversation with Wilkins. Jennifer turned as she hit the door to summon their escape mechanism and witnessed some of the battle.

Carter had obviously shot a grenade from his gun as a great deal of Wraith lay on the ground in front of their little barricade. Warrington and Yamamoto had stunners and stood now that there was no firing from Wraith.

"What are they…" Jennifer stopped talking when she saw Raven, Cole and Carter approach the downed Wraith and fired shots into their skull coverings.

"We stun 'em and then blow their brains out with the M4s and M1014s. Everett brought some real firepower with him. They make a bigger mess but cause less damage to Atlantis," Kyle explained with a grin. "Now get out of here!" He shoved the gurney into the transport as soon as it opened with one hand causing Jennifer to follow it or risk it rolling away.

As the doors closed, she watched men who were her friends slaughter Wraith. She was suddenly hit with the realization of their ultimate reason for being on Atlantis: to kill the enemy. And they were obviously very good at their job.

* * *

"Oh, thank you," Rodney muttered as he sank into a chair after hearing that the _Daedalus_ had arrived and saved Sheppard.

The last few minutes thinking that Elizabeth sent Sheppard to his death and the knowledge that he'd be putting Carson on the next shuttle since he was the next highest-level gene carrier terrified the physicist. Now that neither of those scenarios would happen he could breath again. Seeing Jennifer come into the Gateroom to await dial-out to the Alpha site unscathed took away more of his anxiety.

"Doctor McKay?" a voice called to him over the radio.

Rodney almost fell asleep from his exhaustion so he jerked to his feet and shouted, "Present. Yes."

"I trust you'll know what to do with this?" Colonel Caldwell's voice announced.

Rodney looked around very confused until a bright light appeared in the Control Room. When the light faded two Marines stood there with one holding a large metal box.

"Your ZPM, sir," one of them said.

Rodney ran over to take the box from the Marine and put it on the floor to open it. Carson and several others stared in amazement.

"How did they do that?" the physician gasped.

"Well, the _Daedalus_ is loaded with Asgard technology. The beaming technology's the first part of it. They've got things like..." the genius began to rant as his eyes and hands ran lovingly over the ZPM.

"Rodney, what say we get the shields back up?" Major Sheppard asked over the radio.

"Yeah, what say we?" he said, putting the ZPM back into the case. He didn't pay attention to what Elizabeth was saying to Caldwell. His only priority was getting to the ZPM control room. As he got up to rush off, he paused and looked at the two big Marines flanking him.

"Whoa, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa. What is this? This is my security escort?" he questioned Elizabeth.

"Well, we _are_ spread a little bit thin right now," Elizabeth replied as sarcastically as Rodney would have.

"Okay," he said in a resigned manner. He then addressed the Marines, "You need to know that if we come under fire, you're gonna have to put your lives on the line to protect me."

"Rodney!" Elizabeth snapped.

"Okay," he continued as he started down the stairs. "I mean the ZedPM. You need to protect the ZedPM at all costs... and me." He looked back at Elizabeth as the three of descend the steps. "Am I wrong?"

His eyes swung away from his boss to land on a familiar blond in the crowd of medical personnel. She stood next to a gurney with one of the nurses, an Asian woman whose name always escaped Rodney. He mentally begged Jennifer to turn as he made his way across the room and she did. A huge grin spread over his face as he hefted the box for her to see.

A smile unlike any he'd seen on her face in the last few months graced her features. She briefly pumped her fist in the air and looked past Rodney with an even bigger grin.

The astrophysicist turned to see what drew her attention and felt his heart skip a beat.

"Gentlemen, I'm Gunnery Sergeant Dwayne Richards. Mind if I tag along?" Richards was bristling with weapons and held out a Tac vest to McKay.

Rodney was speechless for a moment. Richards, the toughest, smartest, bravest Marine on the base was going to guard him. "Absolutely!" he shouted. _Finally, I get the respect I deserve. Unfortunately it's on a suicide mission. _

TBC

**

* * *

A/N: Thanks for those who still are following this and I'm really sorry for such a long break on such a big story. I understand if you've forgotten the tale so far.**


	39. Rodney's Afternoon

**A/N: I've finally moved into Season 2, which is more than I ever imagined I'd get with this story. Some dialogue from **_**GateWorld**_**. Thanks _Betherdy Babe_ and _Koinekid_ for looking over this for at least a month.  
**

* * *

Rodney clutched the box with the ZPM tightly in his arms. He was walking a few paces behind Gunnery Sergeant Richards and next to one of the new Marine escorts._ Just a few minutes down the transporter and we'll be in the ZedPM room. _

Richards motioned for McKay and the other Marines to stop while he approached the stairwell. He looked over the railing and pointed his gun down before he moved to the top step.

"_Stairs_? Why are we taking the stairs?" Rodney said.

Richards turned and met Rodney's eyes with a steady gaze. "Because I'd take the transporter."

"You… What do you mean?"

"I always assume my enemy is smarter than me. If I can think of it, so can they."

"So won't they cover the stairs?" Rodney snarked.

Richards nodded and suppressed a smirk. "Only if they're as smart as you."

* * *

McKay and his Marine escorts made their way quietly down the stairs; at least Rodney hoped they were quiet because his boots sounded loud. A look from one of the new Marines confirmed his suspicion, so he carefully watched his steps which meant he wasn't paying attention. When the Marine stopped on the landing in front of them, he plowed into him, which elicited an angry huff of annoyance from his escort.

"S-sorry," he muttered only to get another glare.

Richards was suddenly next to Rodney and the new arrival. His cold stare drilled into the other Marine's brown eyes. A nod of the head told McKay to walk next to Gunny from then on.

The Marine who was angry with McKay took point as they headed down a corridor, which led to the final stairwell to the ZPM room. He suddenly held up his hand causing the others to stop. A hand landed on Rodney's shoulder, pressing him back between some crates. The physicist watched closely as Richards and the other Marines gestured to one another.

_Why didn't I pay attention to that training?_ It was impossible for him to learn the hand signals from Sheppard because of the intense competition between the two. When he'd asked Jennifer for help, the physicist ended up watching her small, sure hands and thinking of how they'd feel doing _various_ things to his body. _I should've paid more attention to what she was saying._

"What was that? I didn't get all that," Rodney whispered to Richards when the Marine glanced his way. "What do I do? Look, I'm getting good at the rolling things, maybe I can, uh..."

Richards held up his hand to silence Rodney and gestured to the Marine on point, who moved forward carefully staying behind crates. The other Marine took up a position behind a column behind McKay and Richards' position.

After what felt like minutes-but was only a few seconds-Rodney heard a shuffling sound. His eyes widened as he peaked over the top of a crate to see a Wraith drone step through the doorway and sniff the air. It grunted and stepped back.

A similar sound came from the other direction so Rodney swiveled and looked over the crates stacked behind him. _Surrounded. Oh crap._ "G-gunny…"

Another hand silenced him as Gunny looked at the Marine behind them, motioned with his hands and then repeated the same motion to the Marine on point. The Marines looked skeptical, but nodded. _I swear I'll learn those signals if I live._

Rodney watched the Richards prepare for battle by pulling a large handgun from his hip holster, another from his boot and a type of shotgun from a holster across his back. The Marine set the weapons on the crate in front of him, lining them up for use later.

Setting the ZPM down between his legs, Rodney suddenly remembered he had a gun too. Looking at the much larger handgun on the crate, Rodney thought about asking to trade but gunfire interrupted his musing.

The other Marines stepped from the safety of the crates into the corridor and opened up on the Wraith. The sound of gunfire was deafening in the enclosed space so Rodney covered his ears and hunkered down.

The physicist thought it odd that Richards wasn't firing at the Wraith. The Marine held the new gun he'd had since Everett arrived and his eyes flicked between the doorways as he knelt next to the physicist.

Gunfire stopped with the two Marines standing back-to-back with weapons raised. One of them stepped toward the doorway in the direction they needed to go. The other held his position looking back the way they came.

"Clear," one of the Marines called, making Rodney start to rise.

An iron grip grabbed Rodney's shoulder and pressed him back to his knees. "Down," Gunny growled.

Duel stunner blasts caught both Marines in the corridor at the same time.

"No." Rodney's eyes widened as both Marines fell like rag dolls to the deck.

Richards' hand motioned for McKay to be quiet as he brought his big gun up while pivoting on his leg to look in both directions. Rodney held his breath for so long he had to gulp in air, which almost got him choking. Swiveling his head back and forth almost caused him a migraine as well.

Richards began to rise up into a crouch and tilted his head like he was listening for something.

Rodney tried to mimic the Marine and felt a pain shoot through his knees. Flinching at the pain, he started when he heard the familiar shuffling of a Wraith drone walking toward them. _We're trapped. How can we get a ZedPM and not get to use it? This galaxy hates me!_

"Be ready to move," Richards spoke so softly McKay barely heard him.

"Wha…"

The Marine moved quickly away from Rodney to a pile of crates closest to the corridor. The physicist assumed he was supposed to follow Richards so he put his gun down and grabbed the ZPM box. He stepped around the large crate containing Richards' weapons and got down next to the Marine, who was busy surveying the doorways.

Rodney's eyes were drawn back to the handgun. Jennifer's face suddenly popped into his mind. Her fear as she described waiting to die on the Alpha site blended with the sounds he'd heard over the intercom during that awful time. _Jennifer and those Marines ran a gauntlet to safety. She was an active participant. I'm on a gate team, so I can do this._

His shaking hand reached out and grabbed the large handgun just as Richards rose slightly to open fire on three Wraith drones approaching from the direction of the ZPM room. Rodney looked in the other direction and saw a couple more Wraith rushing at them from behind. He was concerned Richards didn't know about them so he stood up, lifted the large handgun with one hand and yelled, "So! This is how it's gonna be, huh? Trying to sneak up from behind?"

"McKay!" Richards shouted as he was forced to swivel and open fire on the two Wraith Rodney was yelling at. "Down!"

Two more Wraith stepped through the doorway aiming their gun at Rodney.

"It's okay, Gunny. I've got this." He aimed the gun and grinned with his newly-found bravado. "You want some of this, huh? Huh?"

"McKay!" The angry bark would have stopped anyone else in his or her tracks but not Rodney.

Smiling broadly, Rodney turned off the safety and the clip fell out. His eyes got as wide as the Stargate as he looked at the useless gun in his hand. "Gunny! I'm in trouble!"

A hand grabbed his shoulder and pulled him backwards, causing him to stumble and drop the gun. He fell onto his backside behind a crate to watch Richards shoot the two Wraith and knock over a tower of crates, blocking their way back.

"Gun," Richards shouted as he swiveled and shot another Wraith over the barricade he just made.

Rodney stared in disbelief as he tried to process all that happened in the last few seconds. He heard more shuffling coming behind those Wraith.

"Gun!"

Rodney's eyes noticed the large gun he'd dropped and the clip not far from it. He scrambled on his hands and knees to grab them and also drag the ZPM box to him. With shaky hands he tried to put the clip back in while Richards continued to shoot at the sudden insurgence of Wraith in their corridor.

"I can't…" Rodney stared.

"No! Shotgun!"

Rodney saw the shotgun on the crate where Richards initially put it. He remembered how his great grandfather, Angus McKay, tried to teach him to shoot one as a boy and how it dislocated his shoulder. "I don't know that I…"

"Take it!"

Deciding that disobeying Richards any longer would probably lead to him being shot by the big Marine, Rodney yanked the gun off the crate.

"Go!" the Marine barked as he reloaded and continued to fire at the Wraith, who were settling in behind crates to shoot stun blasts at them.

"I can't leave you…"

"And I can't go!"

Rodney let out a shaky breath, grabbed the box with the ZPM, maneuvering it so he could hold it with one arm and carry the shotgun with his other. How he'd ever use the gun without losing the ZPM was beyond him, but he decided to put his faith in Richards since everyone seemed to. "Okay. I'll do this and come back."

Richards didn't respond except to continue firing over his wall of crates.

Rodney moved quickly down the corridor with one glance back at the blue blasts deflecting around the lone Marine holding them off. A guilty wave passed over him as he imagined Jennifer's reaction to Richards' death.

"Move, McKay!" Richards shouted.

Suddenly convinced Richards did have eyes in the back of his head, Rodney scampered off.

* * *

Rodney shut off his channel to Elizabeth and looked around the infirmary for a place to collapse.

When Teyla and the band of Marines they'd acquired during their walk to the ZPM room and the journey back first entered the infirmary, it was a mad house. Stunned and injured people were all over the place.

Rodney and Teyla were supporting a seriously injured Colonel Everett between them. The poor Marine had been partially fed on by a Wraith. The Marines: Carter, Yamamoto, Raven, Warrington and Richards–_the man had more lives than a cat_-were pretty shaken to see their CO aged a couple decades. Teyla had seen the need for blood in their eyes and she had suggested Rodney help her with Everett leaving the Marines to kill any Wraith they ran across.

_Which they did with precision. _Rodney was taken aback at seeing them deploy a vicious method for ensuring the Wraith were dead, but he could understand. His desire to tear the Wraith that harmed Jennifer apart was strong all those months ago.

_Too much killing for one day. I need to sleep._ Rodney's eyes settled on the closed door to Jennifer's office. Carson told him she was ordered off duty for at least twenty-four hours. He'd been disappointed he couldn't see her, but she needed sleep as much as he did. Stretching his aching back, he decided to use the cot in her office instead of walk to his quarters.

Stepping into the darkened office, Rodney noticed the cot was already set up between Jennifer's desk and the back wall. In the dim light, he saw a blanket spread over it and something under the blanket. He looked back at the door that closed behind him and realized they were relatively alone in her office. The chaos in the infirmary would keep everyone busy and no one would look for either of them for a long time.

_Should I sleep with her?_ They'd shared a bed less than a month ago after a traumatic experience. _And it was the best sleep you had in months._

John's angry words about no time for a relationship rang through his head but they were countered by a sudden whimpering from Jennifer. Pulling his earwig from his ear and lifting his leg to take off his boot, Rodney decided that sleep for him and Jennifer was more important than his team leader's warning or any embarrassment this might cause them.

Rodney pulled the blanket up and sat down on the small space between Jennifer and the edge. He turned onto his side as he lay down with one arm sliding under the pillow cradling Jennifer's head and the other settling around her stomach. She whimpered a bit more, snuggled back against him, which wouldn't have been a good idea if he was wide awake, and then let out a contented sigh.

As his head settled next to hers, his final thought before sleep claimed him was that he probably should have taken a shower since she smelled like flowers and... _I'm too tired to care._

_TBC_

_

* * *

_**A/N: The end of pure Siege stuff. The Siege stuff was for my Gunny lovers, I will admit. Thanks for indulging me. Now Season 2 is going more AU, so I hope you'll stick around. Thanks for all the support on this labor of love.**_  
_


	40. An Interlude

**A/N: This is for the McKellers who've been annoyed with the lack of Rodney and Jennifer fluff. Enjoy. Thanks KoineKid for brief beta.  
**

* * *

Jennifer felt something tickle her neck, when she tried to move her hand to brush it away her hand wouldn't move. It was encased in something warm and was held snug against her stomach and her other hand was equally trapped by an arm.

Jennifer's eyes flew open as she realized someone was holding her, their body molded behind hers on the tiny cot. Trying to figure out when that occurred, she went over all that she remembered before she went to sleep. _ Carson ordered me to after we found out Rodney raised the shield. I came to my office to be close by._ _Perhaps I screamed and someone came to comfort me?_

The tickling on her neck returned as her brain tried to shed its sleepiness and imagine who would be so bold as to crawl into bed with her in the _active_ infirmary. _Carson'll kill him._

The press of something soft and warm to her skin made her entire body tense. As lips nipped at a particularly sensitive area behind her ear, she gasped, "_Rodney?"_

"Jennifer," Rodney sighed against her, shifted so he was leaning over her and continued with tiny kisses along her jaw line. One arm slid out from around her and within seconds Jennifer found herself lying under the physicist in a position she'd never imagined being in.

"R-rodney," she stammered as the impact of having over two hundred pounds pressing her into the cot registered. As his lips claimed her mouth with gentle pressure, she felt tears prickling her eyes at the sweetness of Rodney's ministrations. When her mouth opened to sigh, he deepened the kiss. She slid her arms around his shoulders and returned the kiss enthusiastically now that she knew who had crawled into bed with her.

Rodney was having the best dream in a long time. It felt as real as when those aliens messed with his mind. _Only this time I won't shy away from kissing Jennifer._ In this dream she was responding to the subtle changes of his lips on hers and movements of his hands. The little sounds coming from her throat pushed him to press himself against her lithe body.

A deep groan emanated from Rodney's chest as he realized this _dream_ was getting intense. _It's been a long, long time since I woke up…_

"Jennifer!" Rodney pulled his head away, opened his eyes and gasped in terror as he realized he was lying on top of Jennifer and leaving no doubt for the physician as to what he was feeling.

"Yes?" she questioned as one of her hands slid into his hair and the other rested on his shoulder. "What does the Hero of Atlantis have to say?" A smile crossed her features, which were visible in the dim light from a monitor on her desk.

"Hero? Well, I… Yes, I am. I mean Richards and Teyla helped. I might not have gotten to the ZPM room without them," he rambled. The feel of her hand running through his hair was distracting as was the feel of her body fitting against his in all the right ways. "I… Ah…" Her other hand began massaging his shoulder and all thoughts that this might be wrong fled.

"Sharing the accolades? I hope you're not injured." Jennifer smiled and pulled him back down for another kiss. "Anything to make my hero feel better,"

Rodney decided he did deserve some _reward_ for saving the day and allowed himself to indulge in a sampling of Jennifer's sweet kisses. _Only a few._

He did have the noblest of intentions in mind. Except that a few minutes of kissing Jennifer overrode his control and he found himself throwing caution to the wind and hungrily devouring her mouth.

Jennifer couldn't breathe, but she didn't care. Rodney was kissing her, making her dizzy and warm all over. The more they kissed, the more the despair and loneliness she'd felt as she awaited news that Atlantis was going to survive disappeared. It was replaced with a new, stronger emotion that a part of her knew could lead to heartache if it weren't returned. _ Is this what it feels like to fall in love?_ Memories of romance novels came to mind but quickly faded as the kissing intensified._  
_

"Doctor Rodney McKay, please contact the control room. Doctor McKay, please respond," the voice of Radek Zelenka called over the internal PA.

"I'll kill him. I will take the shotgun Richards gave me and kill him," Rodney muttered as he pulled his lips away from Jennifer's, leaving both of them panting for breath.

"Richards gave you a shotgun?" Jennifer asked. Anger like she'd never felt before for her friend Radek swelled up. _Why are we always interrupted?_

"Yeah," Rodney said as he tried to remember where his earwig was. "Desk."

"What?"

"Oh, sorry I just remembered where I put my earwig. Give me a minute. I'm sure he's just messed something up," Rodney said as he reluctantly left the warmth of the blanket and Jennifer's body.

Jennifer snuggled under the covers and let a tremor shake her. Seeing Rodney with his hair messy from her tugging at it and hearing him breathe as hard as her gave the young woman a sense of power unlike any she'd ever felt before. _This must be why couples make out for hours._ A grin crossed her face as she imagined her and Rodney doing just that now that Atlantis was secure and they had a way back home. _The isolation is over._

"I'm off duty for at least twenty-four hours, Radek," Rodney snapped into his earwig. He deliberately didn't look at Jennifer because he wasn't sure he could keep from pouncing on her. "Can you _not_ break something for that long?"

"The deep space sensors are back on line and they have a longer range due to the fully powered ZPM," Radek continued, ignoring Rodney's outburst. "I thought you'd like to know since I can't imagine anything more important than putting the ZPM's power to use."

Rodney would have agreed whole-heartily a year ago. The concept of finding the lost city of Atlantis and having power to explore it was why he'd agreed to come across the universe. Now he was more reluctant to agree. The need to protect Atlantis and ensure that the scanners were calibrated properly fell on his shoulders and he would bear the weight. _The price I pay for being a genius._

He'd never felt he paid a price before however. As he turned back to look at Jennifer who had turned on her desk lamp and sat on the cot with her feet on the floor, true regret flowed through him. Her hair was a fluffy mass around her head from his hands running through it, her cheeks were flushed and lips swollen. Closing his eyes and making an angry sound, he replied to Radek, "I'll be there in twenty minutes. I need a shower first."

Jennifer's smile faded and a look of understanding crossed her face. "I guess the _hero_ will just have to wait for his fair lady to reward him another time."

Rodney's mouth opened and he was ready to rip the earwig out of his ear but another call came into the room. "Jennifer, I'm sorry to wake you, love, but we need you in the infirmary stat."

Jennifer pushed the intercom button on her desk. "On my way, Carson."

"No rest for either of us," Rodney stated as Jennifer rose from the cot and stepped in front of him.

"Later," Jennifer said. "With the shield and the defeat of three Hive ships we won't have much to worry about for a while."

"Just the usual," Rodney said as Jennifer slid her hands up his chest to rest on his shoulders and his hands rested on her waist.

"Exploring other worlds," Jennifer said as she pressed a kiss to Rodney's chin.

"Dodging Sheppard's bad luck off world," Rodney replied, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Avoiding allergic reactions." She took his face between her hands, moving it so she could press a kiss to his nose.

"Avoiding beatings for doing this to you," Rodney said as he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her thoroughly.

When they parted after nearly losing themselves in the warmth they gained from each other, Jennifer said shakily, "You can take Carson."

"_Carson_?"

"We know Richards likes you or he'd have killed you already," she giggled. "Carson's the only one left."

"He's got a nasty right hook though." Rodney laughed and stole one last quick kiss. "I'll catch you for dinner."

"It's a date," Jennifer replied, pulling away from Rodney. "Go save Radek from himself."

Rodney chuckled as the sound of Jennifer's laughter sent him on his way to take a quick shower and see what the Czech uncovered.

TBC

**

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A/N: I've decided to make Adventure into a new story for each season. This update will be the last chapter to be added to this story for Season 1. **

**I will launch a new story entitled: Adventure of a Lifetime:Season 2. I know it's not original, but I want to make sure people can find it.**

**Thank you for the amazing support and following this story has. I hope you will check out the next season when it's up.** **You guys are the best fans and I hope I don't lose any of you.**

**DaniWilder**


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